Negima: Fallout
by Midnight Sleeper
Summary: Negi Springfield and his class have saved the day and the life of one of their own. Everybody lives happily ever after, right? Maybe not so much...Now back and better than ever!
1. Party Time! A Little Too Much?

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Negima in any way, shape, or form. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only thing that I own are my ideas, so please don't sue There are so many wonderful groups, such as the IRS and my bank that seem to need money more than I do :P

**Author's Notes:** This one is my first Negima fic, hell my first fic on this site for that matter. I haven't written a fanfic for a couple of years, so please don't cut me down too bad. To avoid some questions before they even start, a couple of things to know about this world. This takes place after the events of Episode 26 of the anime, so if you haven't seen it, spoiler-city ahead. The idea has been rattling around in my head for a while now but I've put it off for a while. That being said, there are a few concepts from the manga that have been transplanted into the anime world for this story, the main ones being the details behind pactios and the personalities of some of the girls. I would write about the manga as I prefer it to the anime, but I haven't had the time to read through all of the scanlations yet and don't feel like mucking up things too terribly, at least not for the first story that I post.

I suppose I should put a key in here for those like myself that confuse easily.

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

Quick, simple, and to the point. Well, enough with the ramblings. Story time.

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 1**

* * *

"So Asuna..." 

"Hmm?"

"Do you think I'll ever become a successful teacher?"

Asuna smiles as she holds Negi's hand, the young boy flinching briefly before returning the grasp.

"You will as long as you never give up."

Negi stares up to the night sky, flashbacks of recent events flashing through his mind Although a bit foggy, the memories of traveling into the past flash by. A smile crosses Negi's face as he thinks of how the girls all came together to help save Asuna from the Devil. He remembers the courage that Asuna had in finally reaching out to her friends for help. _"I'm not sure why I can't remember how I wound up in the past, but it has all worked out. I'm so fortunate to have all these wonderful girls in my class. Sister, I hope you'll be proud of me..." _Asuna looks over to see Negi lost in thought and gently pulls his arm to snap him out of it.

"Come on Negi. We don't have to stand out here all night you know."

"Oh? Sorry about that Asuna. I suppose you're right. We should probably hurry and get rid of this machinery before anybody notices."

The pair make their way down from the platforms of Lingshen and Hakase's machine as the night breeze blows lightly through the World Tree. As soon as her feet hit the ground Asuna is wrapped in a big hug by Ayaka of all people. Asuna is a little shocked at first,based on their yell first, ask questions later relationship, but with all that has happened, returns the embrace.

"You know, I think now is as good of a time as any to start over."

Ayaka smiles as the two girls back up before extending her hand.

"I'm Ayaka Yukihiro. What is your name?"

"Asuna Kagurazaka. Nice to meet you Ayaka-chan."

Asuna shakes hands with her friend/nemesis as the rest of the class cheers in approval Even Evangeline can't help but to crack a small smile. A camera can be heard clicking as Asakura takes a picture, as nobody outside of the 30 witnesses on top of the hill could believe that the pair could get along otherwise. After putting her camera back into her vest, the paparazzi goes over and playfully slaps Negi on the back.

"You know, the night is still young. Why don't we finish up the celebration that we started? Come on Negi-kun, you know you want to party as much as we do."

Asakura smiles and flashes Negi a thumbs up as he ponders.

"Well, I suppose I could excuse you from homeroom and my class tomorrow, given the circumstances, but you would still have to go to you..."

Negi is abruptly cut off by the sound of cheering teenage girls, who quickly grab the pint sized professor and take him back to the party, leaving only Chao, Satomi, Chachamaru and Evangeline behind.

"Well, I guess we're hauling all of this back on our own again Satomi." Chao mutters as she watches the class walk back towards the school. "At least we have Chachamaru to help clean up."

Evangeline herself appears to be lost in thought as well until she is nudged on the shoulder by her servant.

"Master, aren't you going to go with them?"

"I suppose that I'd better go. I can't very well have something happen to my apprentice after all the time I've put in with him. Would be such a waste."

"I see, Master." Chachamaru calmly replies, making her master raise her eyebrow in anger.

"And just what is that supposed to mean!? I'm only going to that godawful party to make sure that none of those idiots damage my investment. Don't you have to help these two take this junk back to their lab? Maybe they should give you a debugging while they're at it!"

"Whatever you say, Master." The android replies nonchalantly as she walks over to help with the moving.

"Don't forget that Chachamaru! You need to get those ideas out of your system! I swear that girl's programming is messed up."

With an angry huff, Evangeline follows after the class, leaving the trio to complete their work. The vampire continues on her way back to the heart of Mahora, serenaded by the sound of wind blowing through the trees and the occasional stray animal. As quickly as she had taken off from the World Tree is how quickly Evangeline stops, glaring up into a tree a few feet ahead.

"Oh great. YOU came back." The girl groans as a shadowy figure in one of the branches chuckles lightly.

"Evangeline A.K. McDowell...I've been here for the past few days...well, those last few days haven't technically happened anymore, but I've been here quite awhile nonetheless Shocked that it took you so long to sense me. Either we're getting better with our camouflage or you're losing your edge. So did we enjoy our little trip through time and space?"

"You tell me since you were supposedly with us! Don't you have anything better to do Like going far away again and staying there?"

"Well there isn't any reason to be so irritated with me. I suppose that this is a little better than the last time I was here when you tried to take my head though. You've come a long way in your people skills these past couple of months Evangeline. I'm so proud of you. I used to be a complete hothead too, once up..."

The bulging vein in Evangeline's head seems about ready to burst as she cuts off her unseen "friend."

"To hell with your moment of self-discovery! Now finish your business here and move along! I have no qualms about draining you drier than a desert."

"Ooh, a tongue twister!" Clapping is heard from the tree, making the frustration on Eva's face shine through even more. Not exactly the best work, but you get points for trying Are you irritated because my business is your new magic prospect? You had to know that with my job, this would be happening sooner or later. I promise that nothing too bad is going to happen...and I'm not going to break my promises. Especially to a pretty girl I have to say though, you did look better in the whole little cape ensemble. Need to wear that outfit more often."

"Go away you pervert! My god, you're so vulgar!"

"No, if I was vulgar, I would be saying things like...whoops."

The unseen speaker quickly takes his leave as Evangeline tosses a pair of vials into the tree, encasing it in foot thick ice.

_"I hope that boya is prepared for him. That idiot means business. But how could he have remembered anything about the time travel though...?"_

Evangeline puts her thoughts to the side for now and runs down the trail, hoping to reach the group and more importantly, Negi, before the stranger can.

* * *

"5...4...3...2..1!" Asakura happily counts down the seconds on her watch. "And now it is official! Happy 14th birthday Asuna! Let's give the birthday girl a round of applause!" 

Everyone cheers and whistles as the ponytailed redhead sits near the front of the room tears of joy streaming down her face. Ayaka pats her on the back as she walks up to take the microphone from 3-A's human database. From the back of the room, Negi watches on with Chamo perched on his shoulder.

"So aniki, what are you planning on doing? They all know about your magic. That isn't going to be good if anybody blabs."

"Take it easy Chamo. You've just got to have faith. I trust these girls. All of them. After all that we've been through, I know that my secret will be safe."

"Are you sure you two didn't switch bodies?" A voice asks from behind the pair. Negi spins about to see the speaker, a smiling Setsuna alongside Negi's other roommate Konoka.

"Yeah," Konoka continues. "Usually Negi-kun is the paranoid one and Chamo is the brash one."

"Hey now! I'm not brash! Well, not all of the time..." The ermine tried to defend himself anyways, before quickly being snatched off Negi's shoulder and wrapped in an embrace by the young girl.

"You're just so cute when you try to act serious!" Konoka giggles as she hugs the now laughing ermine, caught up in the bliss of where exactly he has wound up being wedged in this embrace.

"Well, I think he got over being called brash quickly, wouldn't you Professor?"

"I suppose so. What do you think? I trust them to keep my secret as you and the others have "Well," Setsuna begins. "The only one that I would be worried about would be Asakura-san but given the way tonight has been going, I don't think we will have to worry about reading about any wizards in the Mahora newspapers."

Setsuna pauses and catches a paper ball that was all set to bean Negi in the head. The swordswoman feels the odd weight of the ball and uncrumples it, causing an acorn to fall to the floor.

"Looks like it's for you, Negi-sensei."

Setsuna hands the piece of paper over to Negi, who looks at the message scribbled on it.

_Negi,_

_Sorry to interrupt your party, but there is something I need to discuss with you. Meet me outside in five minutes._

_-Takamichi_

"I wonder what Takamichi wants with me?" Negi thinks to himself as he puts the crumpled note into his pocket. "I'll catch up with you girls a little later. Sorry about that." As Negi turns to walk out the door, he accidentally bumps into and knocks down one of his students. Negi quickly picks himself off the floor before offering his hand to the damsel in distress.

"Sorry about that Nodoka-chan." Negi sheepishly grins. "We really need to stop meeting like this with one or both of us falling down and all."

The purple haired girl blushes profusely as she takes Negi's hand. She mutters to herself inaudibly before speaking.

"Hmm? Did you say something, Nodoka?"

"Oh! Um, nothing important. Where are you going, Negi-sensei? You're going to miss our toast."

"Sorry Nodoka. Takamic...er, Takahata-sensei needed to talk to me about something It shouldn't take me too long. Sorry again."

Negi sheepishly grins as he adjusts his glasses and hurries out the door, waving as he does so. Nodoka returns the wave with a smile before sighing in defeat. She is getting better at dealing with boys, Negi anyways, but blew yet another chance, all because she didn't speak up. As the disappointed librarian turns around, she nearly falls back to the ground due to almost bumping into her juice box toting roommate.

"That could have went a little better Nodoka." Yue mutters as she takes a sip.

"Well, um..." The purple haired girl stammers as Yue shakes her head in disappointment.

"It's okay. The festival is still a couple of weeks away. Plenty of time to ask him to spend the day with you. Come on. We don't want to miss the toast."

The duo makes their way to the front of the room as Ayaka finishes up her speech. After another round of applause and cheering, the blonde turns the mike over to Asuna. After taking a few seconds to regain her composure, Asuna raises up her punch glass.

"Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. To have friends like you is a real blessing Here's to you girls! You're the best!"

"To Asuna!" The class replies, raising their glasses to follow suit before downing their punch. A few seconds later, Evangeline storms into the room, a mix of concern and anger painted on her face. She scans the room, looking for Negi to no avail. Frustrated, the vampire grabs the nearest unlucky girl: Student number 2, Yuna Akashi.

"Where did boya go!?"

"Calm down Eva-chan. You're going to give yourself gray hairs."

This comment by the giggling basketball girl does little to improve the mood, as Evangeline shakes her victim down out of frustration.

"I'm going to ask you again. Where is boya?"

"Um...he had to go talk to Takahata-sensei." Nodoka replies as Evangeline stops shaking a now dizzied up Yuna. "Is there something wrong?"

"I know what's wrong!" Yuna snaps out of her daze and grabs a punch glass. "Eva-chan is just mad that she missed the toast!"

"What are you...aak!" Evangeline chokes as Yuna pours the drink down her throat.

"There we go! Isn't that better?" Yuna beams as Eva tries to get her breath back.

"Why I oughtta...you'd better run, Akashi! God help you if I get my hands on you!"

Yuna yelps in fear as she continues to run from the very irritated vampire behind her, who for the time being has seemingly forgotten her reason for needing to talk to Negi. Speaking of which...

* * *

_"Well, this could have gone a little better. Here I was hoping that it would be a little late for pranks.. Tonight of all nights. It's been a good fifteen minutes since Takamichi was supposed to meet me. You're a fool Negi Springfield. Takamichi is probably in bed right now. One of your students got a laugh at your expense. But who? The twins maybe? Wouldn't be the first time..."_

Negi is snapped out of his thoughts when he hears Chamo shouting for him. Negi looks around, finally spotting the ermine running full speed at him, followed by Mahora's resident spook, Sayo Aisaka.

"What's wrong Chamo?" Negi asks as the ermine takes a couple of seconds to collect his breath. "You know, if you didn't smoke, you wouldn't have that problem."

"Forget my smoking for a minute, would you big brother?! We have bigger problems to worry about. You need to get back to that party now!"

"Chamo, are you trying to set me up for something here? I'm getting a little too tired for pranks, especially the one that has had me spending the past 20 minutes outside here for no particular reason. And frankly, if you are trying to use this to lead into me going on a panty raid with you, it isn't going to work any better than your last few attempts."

"Hey, a panty raid sounds pretty good right now..." The ermine chuckles lustfully before snapping out of it. "Never mind that for now, aniki! Everybody has passed out! I don't know what the problem is. One minute everybody is having a good old time, playing games, singing karaoke, and the next minute...BAM Everybody is out cold! Even Princess Death is busy sawing logs!"

"He's telling the truth, Negi-sensei." Sayo vouches for the ermine. "Just out of the blue everybody just seemed to go to sleep! You have to do something!"

Negi nods and pivots around to sprint back. Chamo scurries up Negi's side and perches on his shoulder as the trio takes off back to the party. True to Chamo's word, every single girl in the room is lying on the ground unconscious. Negi looks around the room, trying to find any clue as to what may have happened. Negi's eyes stop when he reaches the corner of the room with the refreshments. Sitting in a chair is a young man with his leather boot bound feet propped up on a table. Negi recognizes the teen instantly, keying in on the dark green cloak and the identically colored feathered hat perched on his knee. The stranger stands up, his waist long sand blonde hair shifting from the momentum as he moves. He puts his hat on his head and parts his bangs, sharp blue eyes set dead ahead as he walks towards the young wizard.

"It's been a while, hasn't it Negi?"

* * *

**Author's Notes**(Yes, even more of them. Oh boy! ) I don't think it turned out too terribly. I do fully intend to add more detail and longer dialogue, but for the time being I'm just shaking off the rust. Chapter 2 is getting polished up and will follow suit in a day or two. (Pauses for cheers/jeers.) Anyhow, as nice as it is to write fanfiction, to me it is just as important to make my writing so it is enjoyable for the readers. Any ideas about what you want to see? Give me a review or drop a PM or E-Mail. I'm willing to listen to anything provided it isn't a full out flame. Enjoy (Hopefully) and I'll see you with Chapter 2. 


	2. Judgement Day? Have Girl, Will Travel

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima in any way, shape, or form. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only thing that I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. You can't very well get blood from a turnip, after all...

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the day or two turning into a week. I've must have rewritten this chapter 3 or 4 times trying to figure out which way to go. Hopefully, nobody is too disappointed. Also, as my first official reviewer, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to animeboy-12. Hope you like it. :)

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 2  
**

* * *

Negi stares right at the intruder in front of him, full well knowing who he is and why he is there. Thoughts race through the young wizard's head. What has he done to the girls? All of which, even Asuna and Evangeline are down for the count. What can he say or do? Will he even listen to reason? What is going to happen? As Negi continues to ponder his situation, the boy speaks up again. 

"Come on now Negi. Out of the three of you, the ghost seems to be the least pale one here. You had to know we'd be meeting each other again sooner or later."

Negi continues to ponder, growing ever angrier over the currant situation. Finally he shouts at his green donned antagonist.

"What did you do to my class!? I know why you're here, but they have no reason to be punished!"

"You know, instead of taking this pissed attitude at me, you should thank me instead. I haven't done anything terrible to them. Far from it, actually. Without me doing that, I would have had no choice but to turn you into an ermine. That may be our course of action anyways unless you sit down and play nice."

"Aniki! This guy's an Observer, isn't he?"

Negi keeps his eyes fixed ahead as he slowly nods. "That easy to tell, eh Chamo? Yes he is, and it isn't his first time here, either."

"Um...Negi-sensei? What is an "Observer" anyways?" Sayo meekly asks as the Observer pulls up a chair and motions for Negi to sit at the opposite end of a table.

"Well Sayo, they are special representatives from my Magic Academy." Negi begins as he walks towards the table. "They are given a list of Magisters in training and keep an eye on them for a couple of days in secret. More or less giving you an evaluation that you are unaware of. They can either make or break your assignment, depending on the report that they give the academy."

Negi keeps his stare locked in at the Observer, slowly pulling out a chair so the two can begin their impromptu meeting. The boy takes a deep breath to try to compose himself a little better, not wanting to make the discussion any tenser than it would end up being.

"All right then. Before I answer anything to you, I want you to explain what you did to my students."

The Observer laughs as he grabs a piece of cake from the table and begins munching on it. "Oh, come on Negi. I'm disappointed in you. Can't you recognize a memory erase spell when you see it? Well, OK, to be fair, not really a spell, but a potion. Funny story really, you see, just like you, I never did get the incantation for the actual spell down, so I find myself having to resort to other means. You know how i..."

"How long are they going to be like this!?" Negi cuts him off, reaching across the table to grab his cloak, making the Observer grin.

"You know what I've realized just now, Negi? I have realized that...this is some really good cake."

Negi facefaults, sending the poor ermine perched on his shoulder catapulting into a stack of present boxes. Negi quickly recovers and resumes his grasp on the green cloak. The boy laughs, making Negi all the more irritated. Fat lot of good it did to try to compose himself a few seconds prior.

"Relax, Negi. I'm just trying to ease the mood a little before we have to get down to business. Seriously though, I have realized something. You really have grown up the past couple of months. At least your courage anyways. To answer your question, the only thing that they will remember is that they had a wonderful time at this little shindig you threw. None of this business of people nearly dying or wizards or any other mentionings of that sort. The brainiacs in the science lab were...coerced into altering the android's memories to follow suit before taking a nap of their own. It will wear off in a few hours. Although there is somebody else that should be in on this little dialogue. May as well, considering that she's been through...hell, pretty much everything with you."

The Observer moves his cloak off to the side and grabs a blowgun out of a holster on his belt. He goes to open a pouch on the belt, but pulls on it a little too forcibly, sending blue powder spilling on his white shirt and black cloth pants. "Yeah, that was nice. Way to make an ass of myself." The Observer continues with his grumbling as he opens up another pouch, seemingly finding what he was looking for as he pulls out a small vial. He takes the stopper off and dips the tip of the dart into a grainy orange liquid. "Here we go. One antidote coming up. She shouldn't forget everything about tonight, probably just the last hour or so." Negi watches on as the dart is fired across the room, sticking right into Asuna's right shoulder. This does very little to ease the grip that Negi has on the cloak.

"Why do you keep doing these things!? She's out already! Don't you think you've done enough!? Eh?"

Negi stops talking, partially because the Observer is in a daze, partially because Asuna is slowly starting to pick herself off the ground. Negi quickly releases his grip and sprints towards Asuna, putting her in a bearhug.

"Asuna! You're all right!"

"Why wouldn't I be? But why does my shoulder hurt so much..?"

The still dazed girl slowly looks over her shoulder to see the wooden dart sticking out. After a couple of seconds of awkward silence, Asuna lets out a scream that would wake the dead, if Sayo wasn't already awake and alert, anyhow. Negi's smile quickly evaporates as it is now his turn to be shaken.

"You need to start talking Negi! The last thing I remember, I told you that you would be a good teacher up on the World Tree! Now, I'm back here, everybody is lying about on the ground, and there's a wooden needle in my shoulder! What the hell is going on!?"

"Actually, that's a wooden dart." The Observer helpfully points out as he tosses a now empty soda can to the side. Asuna puts her roommate down and walks over to where this strange blonde haired man is seated. He flashes her a smile, which she returns before swiftly kicking the chair out from under him, making the man fall squarely on his ass. He barely has any time to react before he is picked square off the ground by the irritated girl that he has just shot.

"It was you, wasn't it? Since none of this happened until you apparently showed up, you'd better start explaining before I let my anger get the best of me."

"Err...right then. I must say, it is a pleasure to finally meet you face to face, Asuna Kagurazaka. I've seen you before, but haven't had the chance to talk with you before."

Asuna lifts him further off the ground, making Negi sweatdrop and mutter curses under his breath. Clearly, this isn't going to help his evaluation any. Sayo continues to watch on with confusion, hoping that the conflict would all eventually work itself out.

"So what gives!? Are you some kind of a stalker or something!? Open the door Negi, I'm tossing this creep out into the trash!"

"You know, for somebody that should technically be dead right now, I'd be a little happier just about being alive."

A look of shock washes over Asuna's face as she drops the Observer to the ground. After dusting himself off, he motions for Negi to sit back down again.

"Sorry about the whole dart thing. Just a little tough to get an unconscious person to drink anything. Looks like you did break the deal with that demon though. Not much of a magic immunity there for you anymore."

Asuna listens on, resisting the urge to toss the boy in the trash long enough to ask a question.

"So just who are you anyways?"

"Yeah, sorry about the bad manners. Not much of an English gentleman I suppose..." The Observer glares at Negi, who was in the middle of rolling his eyes over the comment. "...anyways, the name is Clyde Metro, Observer for Negi Springfield. I lie in wait and evaluate potential Magisters If they perform as they should, no problem. It they take liberties with their magic or mess up otherwise..." Clyde pauses as he glares at Negi again. "...we remedy the problem. Most of the time, punishments range from probation, suspension, repentance tasks, or solitude for a couple of years. As a last resort, we have the method of turning the mage in question into an ermine. It depends on the circumstances. We're not heartless, after all."

Negi gulps in fear as Clyde continues to haphazardly dine on whatever is near him, seemingly treating this as nothing more than a Sunday supper. "I'm sure that you aren't aware of all the things that you did, so here's a little refresher. After Asuna here passed on, you committed two big no-no's. Attempting to establish contact with a demon...very serious indeed, Negi. What would you have done if you had succeeded? You would have brought back an imitation of Asuna, probably at the cost of your own life. The second big offense was using time travel. Although you do get props. Even if aided by technology, time travel is something that is next to impossible to pull off. You need to have everything work to perfection. Shot in the dark, really...getting out of focus here, right? While amazing as time travel is, it has already been agreed upon that due to the lack of knowlege we have at this time, it is illegal to perform or even attempt to perform. Can't have anybody completely wrecking our world and our very existances, right?"

Negi squirms down in his seat, fearful of what could happen to him. _"Did I really do those things? I'm not remembering that part particuarly well, but this does explain how I wound up in the past. This is bad. I'm going to be punished for something that I can't even remember doing...but I don't regret it. Not for a minute."_ Negi's look of fear quickly vanishes, being replaced by a slight smile.

"Clyde, I did what I had to do. If I was put in that situation again, I'm sure I would do it all over again. I know that isn't going to help my case, but I don't care. Like I said, I did what I had to do, now it's your turn to do what you have to. Let's get this over with."

Clyde chuckles slightly and opens his mouth to speak, but is cut off by a loud crashing sound. Both boys look down the table to see Asuna hunched over, fists on the table, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Look, if anybody is going to be punished, let it be me! I was supposed to die anyways! Negi is just a little kid! He only did all of that to save me!"

"A...Asuna..." Negi takes a couple of steps towards the girl, but stops as he sees Clyde patting her on the back.

"Hey, it's OK, Asuna." Clyde smiles as he looks towards Negi. "All the actions that you went through were to help Asuna...and helping people is the very basis of being a Magister Magorum. And seeing as how technically, you haven't even committed those two big offenses, I'm thinking that we're going to look the other way on this one. You didn't cause a time paradox, and you actually changed the future for the better for all parties involved...well, except for those demons, but to bollocks with them. Hell, truth be told, I was a little pissed when I got drug along for the ride, but if that hadn't happened, I might have had to pass a harsher judgement on you. That was one hell of a fight you all put up against that demon king and that helped to soften my mood. You really are lucky though, Negi. The way she wanted to protect you, even back in the past, Asuna will make a good partner for you the rest of your life...just remember to invite me to the wedding."

Clyde chuckles to himself as Negi panics and waves his arms in front of his chest in an attempt to deny the claim. The chuckling quickly stops as Clyde finds himself being flung over the now infuriated redhead he was patting on the back a few seconds earlier. He grimaces in pain for a few seconds before speaking again. "You know Negi, that could play out real interesting during the honeym...ack!"

Clyde is abruptly cut off as Asuna puts her foot on his throat, shooting daggers at him in a manner that would make even death itself take a powder. "If you enjoy breathing, I wouldn't finish that sentence."

"Point taken." Clyde flashes Asuna a peace sign, making the redhead slowly let Clyde out from under her foot of fury. Negi helps to pick the older boy up, smiling as he does so.

"There are a couple of things that I don't understand here. If I wasn't in any real trouble, why did you go through that whole little spiel about crime and punishment?"

"Well, I had to put a little fear in you, Negi." Clyde replies with a smirk. "It keeps your mind sharp, after all. Honestly, let's face it: That whole little deal about 31 girls knowing your secret would have been bad. You needed to catch a little hell about that. But it will all work out fine. Anybody that didn't know your secret before tonight will still be in the dark...well, there is one exception...you."

Sayo blinks in suprise as she sees Clyde pointing at her. She nervously floats over, cleanly passing through the mess that Asuna made with her Observer tossing ways.

"...Sayo, isn't it?" The ghost girl nods. "Good. Now, I don't want to see Negi turned into an ermine any more than you do, so if you could keep this under wraps, it would be a great help. I can't do anything to mess with your mind given your...situation, so it would be a matter of trust."

Sayo smiles and nods again. "I don't want to see Negi-sensei transformed either. I'll keep his secret. I have so far and I don't see any reason why not to continue."

"Wait a minute. You already knew about Negi's secret?" Asuna asks with a hint of paranoia in her voice. If Sayo knows about Negi's magic, how many others could know and are just playing dumb?

"Well, yeah. I'm a ghost. By the way, Professor. I thought you were really brave when you were fighting against Evangeline and Chachamaru."

Negi blushes at the compliment with Sayo's cheeks showing a slight sign of redness as well.

The blonde chuckles and shakes his head. "You didn't think a ghost would see that? What a silly girl you are."

"Well you're the idiot that asked first!" Asuna angrily shoots back., causing the teacher and the ghost to snap back to reality.

"Well, glad to see we have that all worked out. Two people that remember the whole story, and two that remember most of it. Sorry about the whole erasing the past hour thing Asuna...my mistake. 'Asuna-san.' Gotta remember, you all have titles and whatnot over here. Anyways, you didn't miss a whole lot. Was just a bunch of sappy emotional stuff. Could make for good television though."

"That's another thing that I was wondering about." Negi replies as he adjusts his specs. "How did you remember everything that happened...er, was going to happen?"

Clyde chuckles as he takes a bracelet off his right wrist. After looking at it for a few seconds, he tosses it over to Negi. "That right there. Nice little present from the school. Protects the wearer's memory. They got to keep us Observers sharp as tacks, you know. Go ahead and keep it. You never know. It could come in handy." Negi looks his newly acquired magical trinket over. Gold bracelet, blue sapphires set in even intervals, Latin writing masterfully etched on the inside...yeah, they really opened up the purse strings back home in Wales, it seems. "Well, you girls should be moving along now. I just have a couple of things to finish up with Negi here. Charming to meet you both again."

"Nice to meet you, Clyde!" Sayo cheerfully replies as she floats out of the school and back to the clocktower.

"Hmmph...yeah, whatever." An irritated Asuna turns to take her leave, but stops after a few steps. "What exactly are you going to do about all of the girls being passed out here?"

"Uh...they partied a little too much? Besides, don't you deliver bagels or something in the morning? Sounds like a good cover for you not being here."

"I deliver newspapers, not ba...oh forget this. I'll see you back at the dorm, Negi." An exhausted, frustrated, and relieved Asuna leaves the party, leaving the two wizards to their business. As the redhead leaves, the younger of the two boys quietly chuckles.

"You know, I wasn't aware that they gave Observers the authority to carry out punishments."

Clyde chuckles along with Negi. "OK, you caught me. I was going for a dramatic flair. I have to be somewhat serious while on the job, Negi. I could do the ermine trick if I really wanted to, but like I said, since there isn't a problem anymore, there's no need. That's what friends are for, after all."

Clyde holds his hand out towards Negi. After looking at it for a couple of seconds, the younger wizard smiles and shakes his hand. Both boys survey the room, gazing upon the unofficial sleepover that it has become. Negi shakes his head and sighs. "You know, Clyde, there are a lot of things wrong with that plan. It isn't going to look good if a janitor or somebody else walks by and has a look in here."

"You have a good point. What do you sugg..." Clyde trails off as he sees a smiling Negi helping to hoist up an unconscious Yue. "Oh no. I'm an Observer, not a valet."

* * *

"OK, so I'm a valet now.." The older mage mutters under his breath while carrying a brown haired girl with duo cowlicks behind a slow flying Negi. 

"Oh, don't be so down. You always say you want to make a good impression on the ladies." Negi chuckles as the duo closes in on the dorms.

"Yeah, but it would be nice if they could remember my little act of kindness." Clyde sighs sadly as the mages continue with their work.

The mage duo drop off their payload without incident and scramble on back to continue with their task. As the boys enter the room, they notice that one of the girls on the stage is stumbling about.

"Bloody hell. That potion can't be wearing off so soon." Clyde slaps his forehead and grits his teeth. "I made it myself! It should work for at least another four hours!"

"Clyde, I thought you knew what you were doing." Negi says quietly, hoping not to tip the girl off until he could come up with a good lie to explain what the hell was going on. "Don't you test these things before you use them?"

"Pain in the ass to do that every single time." Clyde explains, half confused at this development, half angry for this particular blunder. His thought process ends as he notices the girl walk off the ledge of the stage. Clyde quickly sprints across the room, dodging fallen bodies and tables to get to the front of the stage. He manages to make it up to the front just in time to keep her from face planting, left hand being a landing pad on her abdomen, right hand...well, a little higher than the abdomen.

"Oh crap! Um, I know this probably doesn't look good, but I was just trying to help. I mean, I'm not that shy, but I'm not this forward either."

"Um, Clyde?" Negi tries to get the older boy's attention, who is in full out panic mode at this point.

"I know a lot of people say I'm perverted and have a dirty mind, but I wasn't meaning to, well, feel you up I guess is what it seems like I'm doing. It figures. A cute girl, I save her, but I'm going to end up looking like a jackass!"

"Clyde?" Negi asks again, by this time having made his way to the front of the room and shaking the aforementioned boy's shoulder.

"We could work out this whole misunderstanding. Maybe dinner and a movie? Lunch and a walk? Cookie and a crossword puzzle? Toaster crumbs and a knock knock joke? Man, it's bad when they don't say anything. You must be really mad. I'd probably be pretty pissed if I was in your situ..."

"Clyde!" Negi yells, making him almost drop the girl he just saved in suprise. "I think she was just sleepwalking."

Clyde looks up at the girl's face, eyes shut, light snoring. "Oh. So she is." He laughs nervously as Negi sweatdrops. "Er, yeah, my technique was a little rusty. Not exactly how I like to go about roma..."

"Let's go already, Clyde. I know it was an accident. No need to explain."

"Heh. You sound like somebody who has been on the wrong end of misunderstandings."

Negi slowly nods, flashbacks of his first couple meetings with Asuna in particular running through his head. _"Maybe I should ask her to help us out when we get back to the dorms. No. She's gone through enough today. I'll let her have her rest."_

Negi is snapped out of his thoughts as he sees Clyde holding the girl bridal style in front of him.

"Clyde, you shouldn't be getting any ideas like that." The young mage scolds as the older one chuckles.

"Hey, I'm a gentleman. I'm not going to toss them over my shoulder like they were a flour sack. This is the most efficient way to do this sort of thing on foot. Although she is a little heavy. Maybe it's her assets..."

Negi sighs hopelessly as he picks up Nodoka. "Well, that girl lives on her own in the dorm next to this one and the two we just took back. Let's go before you get any more ideas."

* * *

The two finish up their task of returning the class to their rightful places, the last one being a deactivated Chachamaru, whom they are having a wonderful time lugging back to Evangeline's cabin. Both boys can be heard grunting with the effort of carrying the robot girl, giving anybody that would have been out in the night an interesting display. Suddenly, a loud clunk is heard, followed by an even louder scream from a certain 10 year old English teacher. Clyde loses his balance and falls backwards, quickly moving his hands to avoid them being crushed by Chachamaru's heels. He looks down a few feet to see Negi standing up and whimpering, his foot caught under her head. 

"What the hell? That's the second time you've dropped her! She's heavy, but damn, put some magic into it!"

"You have to give me a break, Clyde. I'm only ten...and she's made out of metal!" Negi tries to defend himself as he picks Chachamaru up off of his foot, continuing their trek.

"Negi, I don't really get it. From what I saw watching you and this class, this girl seemed to have no problems moving around. No weight hindering her at all. So why is she so damn heavy?"

"Evangeline explained it to me once." Negi replies as the duo picks up their cargo again. "Chachamaru is a mixture of science and technology. When she is up and about, the magic kicks in, making her lighter, stronger, and more agile than her mechanical buildings would otherwise allow. Chachamaru is a lot like us in that aspect, as we use magic to enhance ourselves as well. We could probably make this a little easier and power her back up. She'd be lighter then, and at that point, weight wouldn't be a factor because she could walk on her own."

"Can't do that. If we brought her back up to power now, we would have to stand around answering all sorts of questions."

"Speaking of answering questions, wasn't it pointless to have her memory altered? She already knows about magic, being Eva-chan's partner and all."

"Well, Chachamaru didn't take it too kindly when I dropped one of those science girls with a memory blanking dart. The second girl got a dart with a mind control tonic on it. The reason being, I didn't want to get blown to pieces by a robot that was angry at me for knocking out one of her creators. So I had her shut down Chachamaru here and delete and alter some of her memories. Out of sight, out of mind."

Negi nods, angry for Clyde having manipulated the minds of his students, but being able to understand why.

"Isn't mind control forbidden though? I can't imagine that they'll be too happy with you for pulling that stunt."

"That was one of the tools they gave me to do my job, much like that bracelet." Clyde explains as they notice the cabin a few hundred meters away. "The Academy gave me that vial of mind control tonic to deal with any complications that may occur. For being a bunch of teenage girls, you sure have one hell of an interesting class, after all. Ninjas, vampires, robots, martial artists, sharpshooters, I could go on, in fact I had to in your file. About as thick as a damn dictionary...bottom line is though, with all of those intangebles, we bent some rules to compensate."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you all so many headaches."

"Why are you apologizing? You're just doing your job. If anything, the council was impressed and entertained by the read. You are one of the most unique cases seen in quite some time."

Negi and Clyde come to a stop at the cabin door, sighing happily as they open the door. "Well, we're about done." Clyde replies as the trio slowly enters the cabin. "I'm happy that she's the last one. This is starting to get a little old, good deed or not." 

After a couple of minutes, the boys manage to complete their task, placing Chachamaru in a seat in the main room of the cabin. The two make their way out of the cabin, wiping sweat from their brows as they do so. Clyde clears his throat as they walk away from the cabin.

"Negi Springfield...above satisfactory. Yeah, I think that will do for the bottom line of your evaluation. You don't have to worry about a thing. The concern you showed for your students shows you are doing your job and doing it well. I'll be sure that they know that in Wales. I think that should cover everything. I'll see you around Negi."

Clyde begins to walk away, but stops after a few feet, slapping his forehead, sheepishly grinning as he does so. "Sorry about that. I almost forgot! Nekane wanted me to give this to you." Clyde reaches into his cloak and pulls out a letter. "Her and Anya are both doing fine. She never would've forgiven me if I'd forgotten to deliver that."

Negi smiles as he accepts the letter from the grinning Observer. "Clyde, do take care of yourself. I'll see you whenever the next evaluation is, right?"

Clyde flashes the young boy a thumbs-up as he makes his leave, drinking a vial from his belt and slowly fading away a few seconds later. Negi watches as Clyde fades in with the environment before making the long walk back to his dorm.

* * *

Negi tosses his coat onto the coffee table, kicks his shoes off and lies down on the couch, too exhausted to even care about changing into his pajamas. Just before he falls to sleep, Negi feels something land on his leg. Looking down, he notices an ermine with a large bump on his head, staggering up his leg on towards his chest. 

"Chamo! Are you alright!? I'm so sorry!" The young boy profusely apologizes as his fingers begin to glow a pale blue. Negi puts the glowing fingers on the lump on Chamo's head, making it shrink and eventually disappear in a few seconds. "Sorry again. I didn't mean to hurl you like that!"

"That's alright aniki." The still woozy ermine responds. "Oh yeah, just in case you were curious, Asuna got a set of dumbbells. They, uh...kind of broke my fall."

"Sorry about that again Chamo." Negi sheepishly replies. "Is your head alright now?"

"A little bit of a headache, but I think I'll survive. So I take it everything went well?"

"I would say so. I even got a letter from my sister! Turned out to be a good day after all."

"3:17 a.m. I wouldn't be calling it a good day so early. Good night aniki."

"Good night, Chamo."

The ermine climbs into Negi's coat and balls himself up to go to sleep. The young wizard opens up his letter, anxious to see what news his sister has for him. He smiles as the welcome image of his sister jumps from the paper.

_Negi,_

_So how are things going? I haven't heard from you since you wrote about your Kyoto trip. Did you talk that girl into helping you train like you indented to? How about your friend, Asuna? I hope she's still taking good care of you. Anya and I have every intention of visiting you if we can ever get some free time to do so. Don't be such a stranger Negi. Any word is a good word. Behave yourself and take care._

_Nekane_

The image of his sister begins to fade out, but quickly jumps back up.

_Oops, silly me! I know this is going to be given to you afterwards, but good luck on your evaluation. I hope you and Clyde had a nice visit. He was really looking forward to meeting with you again._

Negi watches as the image disappears from the paper, smiling as he folds the letter up and puts it in his pocket. He sighs contentedly as he lets sleep overtake him, happy to be done with dealings with demons and Magister evaluations for the time being.

* * *

**Author's Notes, Part Deux:** So our favorite 10 year old, redheaded protagonist has made it through his latest review no worse for the wear. End of the story? Of course not. If there is one thing that doesn't describe Negima, that is boring. We're only getting started here. Turned out being a little more diolouge than I wanted, but I figured I'd do my best to answer any questions. The next chapter will be up soon, and should hopefully get the ball rolling. Questions, comments, short stories, or do you just need a hug? Well, I can't really help you out too much in the hug department, but anything else, I'm all ears. You like what I'm doing? Let me know. If you don't like it so much, still let me know and I'll see how I can fix it up. See you guys and gals with Chapter 3, coming soon to a PC or laptop near you. 


	3. Cleanup and Cooking and Newbies, Oh My!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima in any way, shape, or form. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only thing that I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. I doubt that winning an IOU in court would make anyone sleep better at night.

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 3**

It's another beautiful morning at Mahora Academy. Naturally, as is the case most days, it is as hectic as beautiful in the dorm room of Negi Springfield, who is going through the process of being woken up in a manner most unpleasant by one Asuna Kagurazaka.

"Come on Negi! We're going to be late for school!" Asuna shouts at the young boy, not having a whole lot of success in rousing him from the couch. "I don't know what the hell you and that blonde haired idiot were babbling about, but it looks like you were at it for too long."

"Mm...just five more minutes, sister..." Negi mumbles in his sleep, turning his back to the irritated redhead attempting to rouse him.

"Five more minutes!? We're going to be late enough as it is! I was hoping you could have been responsible enough to wake us up since it was your turn after all...and since when am I your sister!?"

"Stop yelling...you're going to scare somebody sister..."

Asuna sighs in defeat, walking into the kitchen. She returns a few seconds later carrying a glass of water. She quickly drenches the young teacher, making him roll off of the couch in shock.

"Wha...good morning Asuna!" Negi cheerfully chirps before noticing his recent shower "Um..is there a reason that I'm soaking wet?"

"Yeah, there's a damn good reason why you're soaking wet! We're going to be late for school because you didn't want to wake up! You're a teacher, Negi. You need to start taking some responsibility! Next time, I'll just tell Konoka to wake you up when she leaves for her Library Club meeting!"

"Didn't I give you girls homeroom and English period off today?"

"Like hell! You know, maybe you did, but I can't remember because of the jackass loudmouth with the blowgun!"

_"That's right."_ Negi thinks to himself as he quickly sprints into the bathroom to change. "_Clyde wiped their minds last night, so they don't remember me saying that." Negi tosses on his green suit and adjusts his tie as another thought crosses his mind. "Oh no! With all the things that happened yesterday, I didn't even have time to make a lesson plan for the day! What to do...free period! The teacher's ace in the hole!"_

Negi smiles in triumph as he gets his free pass idea and fixes his tie simotaniously. His moment is quickly dashed though, as his already irritated roommate barges into the bathroom, grabbing him by the tie.

"Asuna!" The young teacher yelps as he is quickly dragged out of the room.

"Okay, you're dressed! Let's go!"

"B...But Asuna..." Negi tries to protest, but to no avail. Asuna snatches up Negi's coat and drags him out of the dorm, tie still in hand.

"You'll live without your coat for now! You're not making us any later than we already are!"

Asuna continues dragging Negi towards the school, breaking out in a full sprint, making the poor boy run faster than he ever thought he could. Even with using his magic, Asuna would still be able to pull away from him on this day, making the day all the more hectic.  
As the duo continues to run, they are greeted by various catcalls and whistles. Neither of the two are able to make out any of the catcalls, going as fast as they are. _"What the hell is with everybody today?"_ Asuna wonders as they continue their sprint through Mahora.  
_"It isn't like this is the first time I've had to drag Negi to school like this. Maybe it's because it's my birthday?"_

Asuna continues her thought process as she and Negi fly through the doors of the school and run into the classroom, which is surprisingly empty. Asuna looks around confused as Negi hunches over, trying to suck as much air as he possibly can into his burning lungs.  
Magic helping him keep up or not, sprinting will tire a magister out, especially one running on only a couple of hours of shuteye. Asuna is about ready to start tearing the room apart to see if this is a prank of some sort when she feels a hand land on her shoulder. She spins around to see a face all too familiar to her, awake or sleep, dreams or nightmares...

"G...Good morning, Takahata-sensei." Asuna nervously bows at the smiling teacher.

"Happy birthday, Asuna-kun." Takahata chuckles a little before continuing. "So I take it that you and Negi-kun are playing dress up?"

Asuna looks at the older man confused before slowly turning around. Her eyes grow as wide as saucers as she looks at Negi, who by now is standing upright, still sucking in wind. The child teacher looks at her confused for a moment, before suddenly remembering why exactly he was protesting against being forcibly removed from the dormitory. He slowly glances down, hoping for the best scenario...finding quite the opposite. Negi screams in horror before quickly diving behind his desk, cheeks flushed a deep crimson. Asuna's cheeks are a similar hue before she snaps out of it and lets her homeroom teacher have it.

"What are you trying to pull here!? I thought you were getting ready!"

"I was trying to, but you wouldn't let me finish! You see, this suit is a little big for me and you pulled me out of the room before I could find my belt..." Negi trails off as he begins stapling a bunch of practice tests together in an attempt to make something to better cover up his boxers. "...you were pulling me so fast, that I seem to have lost my pants altogether...well, I guess you could see that..."

_"Oh geez..."_ Asuna thinks to herself as she bangs her head against the chalkboard. _"That's what all of those girls were clamoring about...damn, I'm making Ayaka look good here."_

Asuna continues to look down at the ground in thought with Negi continuing to staple paper shorts together as a sweatdropping Takahata looks on. After a few more seconds of this particular display, he clears his throat, making the two embarrassed children look up at him.

"Your party must have went on a little too late last night if you two are this dazed, eh? Takamichi chuckles to himself as he pulls out a cigarette and puts it in his mouth."Anyways, the rest of the class has been given a free period more or less to clean up that mess of a party you had. Looked like it was a good time."

Negi chuckles nervously, his visit with the Observer still in his mind. "Yeah, it was an interesting party, to say the least...well, I suppose we should make our way over to help clean up." Negi grabs his coat out of Asuna's hand and wraps it around the paper kilt he has already stapled around his waist. "I think I'm going to change out of this little outfit first though. I'll see you later Takamichi. See you at the cleanup, Asuna."

"See you around, Negi-kun." Takahata watches as the young boy quickly takes his leave before turning his attention back to Asuna. "Now, about yesterday..."

"I, uh, better go help with that cleanup. See you later, Takahata-sensei!"

Asuna sprints out of the room at breakneck speed, nearly taking the unlit cigarette out of Takahata's mouth with the gust following her. He chuckles to himself and walks to one of the windows in the room, opening it before lighting up.

"Heh. She's a good girl, but sometimes she can be a little odd." Takahata watches out the window as Asuna sprints towards the cleanup. "Glad to see she's in higher spirits today though."

* * *

"Let's get this done girls! The more cleanup we get done now, the less we'll have to worry about after school! Let's move it!" 

These words of "encouragement" from the bullhorn-wielding class rep do little to boost the morale of the rest of the class, who can all be heard muttering in frustration. Ayaka sighs, equally frustrated, before raising the horn to her mouth again.

"You all wanted to throw a party, so now it's time to pay the price! Hurry up now and...eh?"

The blonde stops mid-sentence as she notices a heavy breathing redhead running into the room, her embarrassment over what happened a few minutes earlier seemingly gone. Ayaka chuckles lightly as she walks over to the panting girl.

"I'm glad to see the birthday girl could make it." Ayaka's smile quickly fades into a look of anger. "Now, would the monkey kindly tell me what exactly she did to Negi-sensei!?"

Asuna's expression goes from tired to angry in a little under a second. She prepares to shout back at the blonde, but holds herself back, a smile now crossing her face. Ayaka blinks in suprise as the smiling girl quickly grabs the bullhorn out of her right hand before holding it up to her face.

"I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO NEGI! HE JUST OVERSLEPT!"

Ayaka staggers back, holding her ears in pain as Asuna tosses the bullhorn right into the trash. After a few moments, the rep recovers and gets right up into the birthday girl's face.

"Oh sure! Just because you partied a little too much last night, you try to blame everything on poor Negi-sensei! How typical."

"There you go, Ayaka! Pointing the finger at me, no matter what! Don't you ever get tired of it!?"

The rest of the girls, still in a slow daze from the night before, ignore this fight and resume their break. Over in one of the corners, the sports club girls sit at a cleaned off table.

"The rep is really uptight today, don't you guys think?" Makie asks as the group looks over at the ensuing hair pulling and yelling.

"She's a goody-goody. She doesn't like getting in trouble." Yuna adds while chuckling. "It was pretty funny to see her face turn ghost white when the we all got that lecture about responsibility."

"I like what you did with your hair, Yuna." Ako pipes in as she gives it a tug. "Decided to stop dying it?"

"Yeah, I decided I liked it better black, so I took the die out." Yuna giggles as she flexes her right arm. "I think it makes me look tougher, don't you?"

Akira shakes her head and chuckles. "And why do you need to look tough, Yuna?"

"I dunno, really." Yuna smiles, softly punching herself in the head and sticking out her tongue. "I got this weird feeling like it will keep me from being shaken down or something..."

"You get some silly ideas sometimes, you know that?" Makie giggles as she gives the newly black haired girl a pat on the head. A few feet away, an irritated Chisame glances up from her laptop to shoot an angry look at the sports club, all of which now are laughing.

_"What a bunch of idiots. Wow, the basketball girl took the dye out of her hair. Yeah that's really something to bust a gut over. Those idiots will use anything as an excuse to annoy everyone." _The girl shakes her head in anger as she types away on a laptop._ "Of course, I don't hear anything about my new hair color. Nothing like 'Wow, Chisame! You look great with orange-brown hair.' No matter. I didn't do it to impress any of these morons."_ Chisame's anger subsides as a smile crosses her face. _"I know my fans will enjoy the new and improved Chiu! I'm just so exited! I can't wait to get done with this day in hell so I can go back to my safe haven in my room and give my fans reason to fall in love with Chiu all over again!"_ The computer genius smiles and hugs herself, the sparkles in her eyes hidden by the light reflecting off of her glasses. However,she is quickly brought back to reality as a hand falls on her shoulder. Screaming, the girl quickly shuts her laptop and looks behind her to see a smiling Asakura.

"Oh wonderful. How can I help you out today, best friend?" Chisame asks sternly, the sarcasm just dripping off her words. The redhead's smile grows even broader as she puts her arm around Chisame's shoulder, much to her annoyance.

"I need you to develop some pictures for me a little later." The paparazzi continues to smile as the frown on the net idol's face stoops lower and lower. "Normally, I'd have them developed in the journalism club room, but I know that you have better equipment in your dorm. It would really mean a lot to me...Chiu."

Chisame freezes up with that last word. She hates when this happens. Ever since that loudmouth dolt learned the truth about Chiu, she has used that to get Chisame to help her with whatever she may need. Of course, she could always turn her down, but then would run the risk of seeing her double life exposed all over the Mahora newspaper, something to avoid at all costs. "One of these days...I mean, she can't possibly hold this over your head forever, can she? I can always try to make her disappear, but where would I hide her at...?"

As the thoughts of daggers and disappearance continue to flood Chisame's mind, the other girl snaps her back to reality by pulling on her ponytail.

"Hey, I hate to take you away from whatever you were thinking, but are you going to help me out or not?"

"Fine, whatever." Chisame huffs in anger as she stands up. Apparently, Chiu's new debut is going to be put on hold for a little while later than originally intended. Asakura smiles and pats her on the back before taking her leave, causing the other girl to sigh in defeat.

At about this time, the fearless ten year old teacher makes his debut. After double checking to make sure he has a belt this time around, he turns his attention to the three person pile in front of him: an unconscious Asuna and Ayaka, with nurse Ako checking over the two for any possible injuries.

"What in the world happened!?" The worried teacher asks as the rest of the class looks on, some in concern for their classmates, some in relief that they passed out and are no longer trying to kill each other.

"Don't worry too much, sensei." Yue calmly replies as she looks down at the pile. "We figured this time around, we'd just let them tire themselves out. It worked pretty well, it seems."

Negi sighs and adjusts his specs. Too bad Clyde couldn't have left the memory of the two girls making nice intact. _"It's bound to happen eventually though. Hopefully sooner rather than later."_ After a couple of minutes, Ako motions to Chizaru and Natsumi. The pair quickly walk up and help their fallen roommate to her feet, sitting her down in a chair Ako tries to pick up Asuna herself, succeeding for a little while before losing her balance.The two are stopped mid-fall as a girl puts a hand on both of their shoulders. Ako looks up to see a smiling Kaede.

"Not as easy to move somebody when they aren't on a gurney or in a wheelchair, eh? It comes with experience in the job. Don't worry too much."

Ako chuckles nervously as she pushes herself back upright. "I suppose so. Thank you for the save, Kaede-chan."

"You're welcome. After all, I have to look after Baka Red here."

Kaede bearhugs Asuna and quickly puts her down in a chair.

"Well then, should we finish our cleanup? We're all relaxed and rested now, so I don't think it will take too long."

The rest of the girls cheer and resume working, as Negi watches on for a few seconds with a smile on his face. Gotta love the strong, mostly silent types who can command respect. He continues to smile as he tosses himself into the chore of cleanup.

* * *

The day ended quickly enough, with cleanup taking a lot shorter than the class expected, being able to finish up without having to dedicate any time after school to the task. Negi noticed that Evangeline and Chachamaru were strangely absent today. Very strange, as ever since the Kyoto trip, Evangeline started showing up to class everyday. Negi discounts it for the time being, too tired today to ask, and makes his way back to his dorm room. Negi pushes the door open, the smell of Konoka's cooking filling his nostrils as he steps inside. He surveys the room, Konoka working on the stovetop, Chamo sitting on a nearby table acting as a taste tester, Setsuna polishing up her sword, and Asuna holding a cold compress to her forehead. The girl glances at Negi for a second before leaning back in her chair again. The brown haired girl at the stove looks over at the young teacher,flashing him a smile. 

"Hi Negi-kun! Steak and hashbrowns alright tonight?"

"Sure. Thank you Konoka."

Negi puts his suitcase on the desk and sits down. Gotta love western cooking night. Something that Konoka put together for Negi to make him feel more at home. Not quite as good as the cooking back in Wales, but the girl is fast approaching that mark. He's assured her that there was no need to go through the trouble on his account, but Konoka insisted. _"Konoka's such a sweet girl. I'm sure sister would like her..." _The ditzy smile on Negi's face quickly disappears as he realizes what he's thinking. _"Stop it, Negi. She's your student and you are her teacher! Quit getting these ideas!"_ After a few seconds of head shaking, Negi comes to, chuckling nervously at the trio of girls who are now looking strangely at him.

"Sorry about that, girls. Heh, long story." Negi chuckles nervously as the trio of girls goes back to what they were doing before. Unfortunately for Konoka, she manages to lose her footing on the kitchen tile, sending the skillet of hashbrowns she was working on flying out of her hand. On instinct, Setsuna springs from her chair and into the kitchen, catching the damsel in distress in one hand, using the other to perfectly balance the skillet on the blade of her sword. Setsuna sighs in relief, moving the skillet back onto the stovetop before looking down at a smiling Konoka.

"Are you okay, Oujo-sama? Please be careful next time."

Konoka giggles, making Setsuna's cheeks flush red. "Thank you, Se-chan. You're always having to save me. I'll be more careful so you don't have to bother with worrying."

"I...It's no bother at all." The blushing girl replies as she helps Konoka to her feet. Negi and Asuna sigh in relief as well before the boy decides to take a chance and ask a question.

"So, um...what was it about this time?"

"Something stupid as always. Ayaka really needs to grow up."

"Pardon me for being frank, but maybe she isn't the only one that needs to do that."

The girl puts the cold compress down and stares at Negi, who has his eyes closed and his head ducked into his shoulders. Asuna raises a hand...and pats Negi on the head, much to the boy's shock.

"Maybe I'm right, maybe you're right. All I know is that it has been a long, stressful day for supposedly being my birthday. I think I'm going to go to bed after supper. Got my paper route to look forward to tomorrow morning."

Asuna leans back in the chair with the compress to her head as Negi looks at her sadly._ "Maybe I could find a way to make them be friends without fighting...?"_ The wizard is snapped out of his thought as he hears a slicing sound followed by four rapid thuds. He looks into the kitchen to see a blushing Setsuna wiping blood off her sword as Chamo and Konoka applaud.

"That was incredible, Se-chan! Wow! you even managed to score it before it hit the pan!"

"I...It's not incredible...any other person with my training could do it as well. You don't have to pay me compliments like that, Oujo-sama."

Konoka giggles as she adds seasoning to the meat. "You're right, Se-chan. That was amazing! Thank you for being my helper. I can handle the rest."

Setsuna freezes for a second, cheeks redder than the blood she just wiped from her sword. "...You're welcome, Oujo-sama." The girl quickly bows and scatters back into the living room. Negi smiles warmly before opening up his planner to sort out his lessons for the next day.

* * *

"...Zazie Rainyday?" 

"Here, Negi-sensei."

_"Hmm...Evangeline and Chachamaru no-showed again today. No matter. I'll go check in on them after class and find out what's going on."_ Negi puts the final mark on the attendance sheet and is about ready to begin the lesson when he hears the door opening.  
The boy glances over to see Headmaster Konoe smiling at him.

"Good morning, class. Good morning, Negi-kun."

"Good morning, Headmaster-sensei!" Class and teacher cheerfully respond. The Headmaster clears his throat before continuing.

"It is my pleasure to announce that you will have a new student joining your class. The one thing I want you all to know is that this particular student is an honor student from overseas, not a publicity stunt. I hope you will all show him proper respect."

All of the occupants of the room look at the old man confused. Did he just have a slip of the tongue? As the class representative, Ayaka decides to bite the bullet and correct him.

"Excuse me, Headmaster. Did you just say "him?" This is an all girls school, right?"

"WAS an all girls school, Ms. Yukihiro. And after he leaves, it will be an all girls school again. We've been thinking of assimilating for the past couple of years now. Consider this another test for your class, if you will. You've all taken Negi-sensei in, I have no reason to expect you all to disappoint me by not taking this new student in. Sorry for disrupting your class, Negi-kun. I'll send him right in."

Negi bows to the Headmaster as he leaves the room, the boy's smile a few minutes prior during roll call replaced with a look of dread. This isn't going to be good. Footsteps closing in on the room from down the hallway turn the boy's attention, as well as that of the class, to the door. Sure enough, there's a boy wearing a Mahora uniform there. The only difference is the skirt has been replaced by black slacks and the vest replaced by suspenders. Negi looks at the boy, the aforementioned look of dread growing deeper by the second. He was hoping against all hope that it was someone, anyone else. Could have fooled him as the blonde hair was only neck length now and the bangs were slightly shortened as well, but the sharp blue eyes were a dead giveaway. As if it weren't stressful enough having to worry about an Observer popping in at random, now he has one watching him in class and around the campus for God knows how long. The boy smiles, putting an apple on Negi's desk, as well as an envelope. Negi quickly opens it to find a small card inside.

_We'll talk with the Headmaster after we get done with school. You don't know me. I don't know you. Ignorance is bliss for those outside of Asuna, Sayo, and ourselves._

"Good morning, Professor Springfield...sorry, my bad: Springfield-sensei. I suppose you want me to introduce myself to the class, right?"

Negi gravely nods, not necessarily prepared to spend all of his time walking on eggshells. Then again, he got off rather lightly for all he supposedly did. Maybe this won't be too terrible. Plus, having another mage around might make his job easier rather than harder.

Meanwhile, the whole class locks their gazes in at the new student. He looks around nervously before breaking out a grin.

"Hello girls, and I must say, I look forward to meeting all of you! My name is Clyde Metro, and I hail from Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States! My date of birth is May 16, 1988, my blood type is AB...gee, I hope I'm not getting too personal. Oh well! I enjoy an assortment of things; western music, sports, cooking, and flowers. Yes, I am man enough to admit that I enjoy flowers and cooking! So, uh, that's me in a nutshell, I guess. Yeah!"

Clyde flashes class a winking smile and a victory sign. Everyone in the room looks blankly at him for a few seconds before he is trampled by the majority of 3-A. Asuna just glares over and turns away angrily, Nodoka yelps in fear as the class machismo has now been successfully doubled up while Yue comforts her, Asakura appears lost in thought as she stares at the spectacle in front of her, Setsuna and Mana exchange amused looks, and Chisame...well...

_"Great! Another boy for all of these morons to swoon over and for me to have to hear about. What in the hell is wrong with this school!? Is there any reason they had to throw all of the whack jobs in this school into the same room with me!?"_ Chisame sighs in frustration and does her best to keep herself from yelling her thoughts out loud.

"What a cutie! Look at those eyes!"

"I still think Negi-sensei's cuter."

"You would! Don't pay any attention to her. I'll help show you around."

"I want to show him around!"

"Hey, you said you like sports? You could join the basketball team!"

"He could, but he's going to join the walking team instead!"

"He speaks Japanese pretty good and is an honor student...he can be my study buddy!" 

"Girls, settle down! We still have class!" Negi tries to get control of the class, but isn't having much luck. Clyde on the other hand has had his look of initial happiness change to a look of worry as he now has his fellow classmates tugging on his arms and legs, trying to pull him about like a rag doll. Negi watches on helplessly as the girls continue their relentless assault. Negi looks around for a solution, and finds one in the form of Ayaka, too far out from the skirmish to be a factor.

"Ayaka-san, can you please try to talk some sense into them?" The teacher pleads as with no other limbs to grab, the girls have resorted to expanding on their tug of war by reaching into his coat and grabbing his suspenders. Ayaka blushes at the very thought of helping her beloved pint-sized teacher.

"I'll do it...just for you Negi-sensei." Ayaka smiles and pats the boy's head, causing Asuna to roll her eyes and mutter under her breath in disgust . Ayaka wades through the gaggle of girls, gently pushing them to the side before taking Clyde's tie away from Makie. 

"Aw, you're no fun, Ayaka!" The pink haired girl pouts as the rep helps her fellow classmate to his feet and away from the girl pile.

"Are you trying to rip our new classmate to shreds!? My God, you're all going to scare him back to America!" Ayaka's look of anger melts to one of concern as she looks at the boy in front of her. "Allow me to introduce myself. Ayaka Yukihiro, 3-A's class representative. I'm sorry about that, Clyde-san. Apparently, none of them know how to behave around a teenage boy, this being an all girls school." Ayaka blinks a couple of times looking at the boy, who's eyes are sparkling and has a dumb smile painted on his face. "Um...are you okay?"

Negi sighs as Clyde stands there dumbfounded. After a few seconds, Ayaka begins ripping into the girls for traumatizing the new boy. Negi walks over and puts an arm on Ayaka's shoulder, making the blonde stop mid-rant and blush.

"That's fine enough. Thank you for the help, Ayaka-san."

"Sure...no problem, Negi-sensei."

After the girls finally make their way back to their seats, Negi opens up a folder and pulls out a seating chart. "Hmm...well, there's an empty desk beside Evang..."

Negi stops mid-sentence. Evangeline wasn't too fond of meeting Clyde the first time he made an evaluation. Odds are she wouldn't respond too positively if she came back to class to find him sitting next to her. Negi looks over the chart, trying to find a spot to put him in that he wouldn't be too much of a distraction to the rest of the class. Negi smiles, sure of finding a place that wouldn't be too bad. Clyde shouldn't have any trouble with this deskmate. Mature enough for her age. Plus the girl that Negi would move next to Eva is one of the very few that she could tolerate.

"Um, Yotsuba-san? Would you mind if I moved you to the back with Evangeline and put Clyde-san in your chair?"

The lunch representative looks up at Negi looking slightly confused before smiling and nodding.

"Sure thing, Negi-sensei."

Yotsuba picks up her belongings and moves to the back of the room. Negi taps Clyde on the shoulder, breaking him out of his Ayaka-induced swoon and points to his new desk. Clyde nods and has a seat. The boy surveys his new deskmate, a happy looking brown haired girl with a beauty mark under her left eye and a sizable bust. Clyde starts swooning again as the girl chuckles.

"You sure you're okay? Maybe you have a concussion? You can't seem to hold your head up straight anyways."

Clyde manages to snap out of his stupor as he notices that he's been busted. "Heh...um, no, I'm fine. Thanks for asking...um..."

"Chizuru Naba. Nice to meet you, Clyde-kun."

Clyde smiles as he shakes the girl's hand. "Nice to meet you too, Chizuru-chan."

Negi smiles, content with where he set his Observer at and happy to see he's making an attempt to behave himself. As he turns around to write part of the day's lesson on the chalkboard, Chizuru nudges Clyde's shoulder and hands him a note. The boy blinks a couple of times in confusion before reading it. About five seconds into the note, blood gushes out of the unfortunate boy's nose, making the whole class stare at him. A combination of laughs, groans of disgust, and the sound of a certain nurse falling out of her chair passed out can be heard.

"Ha ha! Clyde-san was thinking dirty thoughts!"

"He's just like you, rep!"

"Gross! It's all over the desk!"

"That's Chizuru for you!"

"Is Ako okay? She looks a little pale..."

"My, my...I was only joking with you Clyde-kun. I didn't think I'd make you do that." Chizuru chuckles as Clyde stands up from his desk, holding his head up in the air,carefully navigating his way to the front of the classroom to grab some kleenex.

"Um, is there a problem, Clyde-san?" The confused teacher asks as his newest student begins stuffing his nostrils with the paper before finding a roll of paper towels and some disinfectant in the supply closet in the room. After a quick cleaning job, the boy flashes a thumbs up to the class and his teacher. Negi slowly smiles and returns the thumbs up, all while sweatdropping. Clearly, this is going to make class as well as his life even more interesting than it was before...

* * *

**Author's Notes:** First of all, I hope everybody is enjoying what I'm doing so far. Secondly, sorry it's taking so long to build up. 13000-plus words and still little sign of the promised action/adventure and romance. That's soon coming to an end in the next chapter or two. Always fun trying to get a comfortable feel, isn't it? Props to Hikari17 and NefCanuck for the new reviews...speaking of which, the more, the merrier. Something you like? Let me know. Something you think could use some improvement? Let me know. An idea you'd like to see...yeah you get the picture. Leave a review, PM, or e-mail, and I'll see what I can work in. Like most other authors, I thrive off of feedback. Enough of a rambling for now. See you with Chapter 4. 


	4. Story of the Year! An Asakura Exclusive!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Negima in any way, shape, or form. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only thing that I own are my ideas and my OC, Clyde Metro, so please don't sue. I don't have enough greenbacks to be tossing them about like party favors.

* * *

**Negima: Fallout**

** Chapter 4**

Kazumi Asakura. Student number 3, date of birth January 10, 1989. Points of interest: Ace photographer, reporter, 3-A's human database, best friends with a ghost, and proud owner of the fourth largest bust in the class. And today, this girl's life is going to become even more interesting...

Class has finally come to an end and the students take their leave. In all of the commotion of the maelstrom of happy girls, neither Negi nor Clyde can feel the gaze of the class reporter locked on them. The redhead loses herself in thought as she continues her gaze,  
memories of the night before dancing through her head.

* * *

**_The Day Before..._**

"Come on, Chisame! It shouldn't take this long!" Asakura playfully eggs on her irritated classmate, who mutters profanities under her breath in between keystrokes.

"Asakura, if you keep this up, how am I supposed to do a decent job? And why exactly do you need these pictures so badly?"

"News has been boring the last couple of weeks. We have the big festival coming up here in a little while, but it won't matter if I have stories from it if the readers have all been scared off before the festival hits."

"...And you're thinking that Kagurazaka's birthday is going to be the big news you need to save your readership?" Chisame scoffs as her printer whirs to life. "You're really losing it, you know that?"

"Hey, what would you prefer to see in the newspaper? A happy birthday for Asuna Kagurazaka, or..." Asakura chuckles softly before continuing on. "...the in depth interview with net-idol Chiu?"

Chisame chuckles nervously as she grabs the pictures from the printer. "Happy birthday, Asuna sounds a lot better. It would be MUCH more interesting to read a story about an actual student from the school rather than some internet idol that nobody has heard of..."

"I'm glad that you're willing to help out with that Chisame-chan." Asakura smiles, patting her brown haired "friend" on the shoulder before looking through the photos."Hmm...Okay, the rep rambling on...cheerleaders cheering...Makie pulling off backflips...there isn't really anything in here I can use. Not even a good picture to make a story up around...what do we have here?"

The reporter stares hard at one of the pictures, motioning for Chisame to come over and look as well. Both girls look at the picture, and then each other in confusion.

"Well, this could most certainly work for a story. **'Hell Freezes Over. Kagurazaka and Yukihiro Make Up And Play Nice.'** Only one thing though..."

"...I don't remember that even happening." Chisame finishes the sentence out, both girls trying to scrape together an answer. The net idol looks over to the reporter, her look of confusion replaced by a look of skepticism. "You think I doctored that picture, don't you?"

"You had to! There is no possible way this could happen and then the very next day they get into a massive rumble. Birthday or not."

"What reason would I have to make up a picture like that? And besides, even as good as I am with computers, I couldn't doctor this one that well in five minutes. Look at all the detail! Just fixing it up to have the hair blowing in the wind and making it look that accurate would take me at least..."

Asakura chuckles, putting a finger to Chisame's face to cut her off. "You know, considering that neither of us can remember this little detail, I think I have a new idea for a story. Thank you for doing this for me, Hasegawa. Doesn't it feel good to do something nice?"

"Hmph. Whatever. Door's over there, Asakura." Chisame huffs as she goes to rummage through her closet to prepare for her favorite (and seemingly only) hobby.

Asakura looks over the photograph and continues to walk down the dorm hallway to her room. _"Yeah, I have a new idea for a story. Nobody else had my camera last night, and I can't remember taking that picture of those two having their little happy moment, so what the hell is going on? What exactly happened last night? Did everybody get drunk or something?"_

The reporter walks into her dorm, sitting the pictures down on her desk before pulling a videotape out of her bookbag. She pops the tape in the VCR and grabs a pencil and notebook before sitting down, curious to see just what exactly happened. Giving a speech...okay, can't really remember that one happening. A toast? Yeah, that's a possibility. Rep talking some more...ho hum...Asakura is about ready to fall asleep herself when she is brought back around by the sound of something thudding. She glances back at the TV, watching on in confusion as one girl after another drops. Down goes Asuna, down goes Ayaka, down goes Asakura._ "Well, this is certainly interesting. And to think I was originally going to tape this as a present for Asuna..."_ Asakura continues to watch on, the confusion growing even larger as she notices Sayo having a conversation with Negi's pet.

"What the hell!?" Asakura quickly muffles herself, not wanting to draw any attention from the neighboring girls. "Talking ermine...amazing!" She sits back in her chair, scribbling notes down on her notepad as she watches the ghost and the ermine flee the room in search of what she gathers to be Negi. After another minute or so, she notices something else rather odd on the tape: something or somebody slowly starting to appear at one of the food tables. Another ghost in the class? No, it can't be. Whoever this is seems to be having a nice snack off the table. After a couple of minutes, Negi runs into the room with Sayo and Chamo. After a couple of minutes of listening, an irritated Asakura discovers just why exactly she can't seem to remember anything.

"Son of a..." The girl muffles herself again, hoping that nobody is getting suspicious yet. Not everyday one hears the usually composed class reporter screaming profanities, after all. After settling down, she rewinds the tape to view the part her outburst caused her to ignore._ "Ooh, this stuff is pretty good. A lot better than some little hug between enemies, that's for sure. The way things look, I think that Sayo and myself are going to have ourselves a little chat tomorrow..."_

* * *

"Asakura-san? Ms. Asakura? Are you feeling well?" 

The girl is brought back to reality as she feels Negi tapping her on the shoulder. She jumps out of her desk in shock, nearly knocking Negi over in the process.

"I'm terribly sorry, Asakura-san. It's just that class has been over for the last five minutes and you were still staring at the chalkboard." Negi smiles warmly as he hands the girl her bookbag. "Is something the matter? Truth be told, you were one of the first girls I thought would swarm Clyde-san."

Asakura takes a few seconds thinking over her options, finally deciding to just play it cool for now. "I'm fine, Negi-sensei." The girl smiles back, patting Negi on the head as she does so. "I was just thinking of a new story for the paper. I'm planning on interviewing Clyde-san very soon though after I finish with this scoop I'm working on now. Sorry for spacing out."

"That's quite alright. But your studies are just as important as the newspaper. You're one of the top students in this class and don't want to see your grades suffer."

Asakura winks and flashes the teacher a thumbs up. "Thanks for the nice words. I'll try to pay better attention next time. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some work to do on that new story."

Negi watches as she walks out of the room, chuckling to himself as she passes through the doorway. _"Her dedication to her work is impressive. Nothing is going to come between Asakura-san and her goals. Me and her are a lot alike in that aspect. She could make a good pa..."_ Negi slaps his forehead in frustration, cutting his thought process off. _"Come on, Negi! Why do you keep getting these thoughts!? These are your students!"_

"Are we having ourself a mental breakdown?" Negi glances over to see Clyde sitting in his chair, feet propped on his desk, and eating the apple that he had given Negi at the start of the day. "Sorry to cut you off there, but don't we have a meeting to get to with the Headmaster? I'm sure that you're just dying to know what the heck is going on, right?"

"Sorry for holding us up Clyde. I was just thinking..."

"About girls?" The blonde cuts him off, taking another bite out of the apple.

"Yes, about girls...no!" Negi stammers after falling hook, line, and sinker. "It's nothing like that at all! I'm a teacher and an English gentleman! I don't have time to be thinking about my students in such a manner!"

"Mm-hmm...whatever you say." Clyde chuckles as he tosses the apple core into the trash. "I'm an English gentleman too...just that for my cover and to avoid questions about us knowing each other, I'm from Baltimore now...anyways, your secret is safe with me, you little Romeo. Now come on. We got to go have a little chat."

Clyde throws the younger boy in a headlock and walks down the hall with him, smiling and laughing at all the comments the two boys are receiving. Meanwhile, hiding behind a corner, Asakura grins and makes her way to the girl's restroom.

_"This is perfect. A nice little meeting with the bigwigs in the school. This little story about magic is just going to keep getting better and better."_

Asakura snickers as she gives the room a quick scan, confirming that it is empty. She bolts into one of the stalls, locking it behind her before standing on the stool to remove a duct above. After taking her camera out of her bag, she sets it on the tank before climbing up into the ventilation shaft. _"Okay, now if I remember right, I take the second left and then the next right to get right above the Headmaster's office."_ Everybody has always wondered about how Asakura is able to keep on top of the news world around Mahora; well the vents are just one of her tricks. She hums softly to herself as she continues on towards her goal...

* * *

"So Clyde, what exactly is going on? Why are you back so soon?"

Clyde chuckles at the boy before beginning. "It's simple, really. You are just such an interesting case that the council elected to have me stay on a little longer and watch you a little more, this time taking a more hands-on approach."

The Headmaster clears his throat and glares at Clyde, making his smile disappear into hysterical sobs. Negi looks on in shock as the older boy wraps his arms around him.

"Okay! Truth be told, after reviewing the report that I had given about you, the council wasn't thrilled at all. To be frank, they were pissed at the both of us. You for what you did to save Asuna, me for not carrying out a punishment and letting you off the hook. They're still trying to figure out what to do with you, but as for me, I've been suspended indefinitely! Man, this is the same reason I left the academy for three years! Those old dust bags won't listen to reason, or extenuating circumstances or anything of the sort...er, no offense, Headmaster-sensei. It's terrible!"

Negi sweatdrops nervously, blinking a couple of times as Clyde shakes him. _"Oh crumb. I should have known that it wouldn't be that easy to get through that whole mess."_ Negi regains his composure, prying Clyde off of him before speaking up. "So what exactly put you back here if you've been suspended?"

"This would happen to be Clyde's new post for the time being." Headmaster Konoe pipes in, causing both boys to shoot their glances at him, hoping for answers. "You see, since he has been suspended as an Observer, the mages in Wales decided to give him another task for the time being. He is to assist you in your job here, as well as help the school deal with any...difficulties it may face. One stipulation that they were rather clear about is that both of your fates are tied. If one of you fails, so does the other. You two are quite lucky. They were actually thinking of turning you into ermines, but based on the end result, the council in Wales decided to show leniency. I hope you two appreciate this second chance."

Konoe chuckles before continuing.

"I know that based on your performance here that you won't let me down, Negi-kun. As for you, Clyde-kun...I've heard about you. Joined the Meldiana School of Magic at age 4. Graduated at age 10, an impressive feat not matched until Negi-kun pulled the trick off a few years later. After your graduation, you refused jobs from the academy in order to set out on your own path, with little known about you or your happenings for the next three years. Returned to the school, ready and willing to work whatever job you were given. Worked your way through the ranks rather quickly, eventually being promoted to Observer. Your resume is quite interesting. However, it seems that something in those three unknown years seems to have changed your outlook. I take it you had yourself some learning experiences during that time?"

"Yep. Saw the world, sailed the seas. Learned a lot about myself..." Clyde grins and laughs, quickly cutting himself off and changing to a more somber tone. "Sorry about that, Headmaster-sensei. Wasn't meaning to sound sarcastic. Truthfully though, those three years brought on some of the best life lessons I have ever learned."

"Glad to hear that you benefited from your time on your own. I hope that those experiences will help you in your tasks here. I'm expecting that you will not give me any reason to regret my approval of you to stay here."

Clyde smiles and bows in respect.

"Understood, Headmaster-sensei. I'll do my best not to let you down."

"See that you do. Now that we have that out of the way, I suppose that you will need lodging. We don't have any empty rooms at the moment, so I'll have to bunk you with some of your classmates. I'll have to get back to you on which room you'll be assigned. As for other things, if you need a girlfriend, my granddaughter is currently single."

A smirk crosses Clyde's face, which is quickly wiped away as he is tapped on the back of the head with Negi's staff.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Clyde!" The young boy scolds, the older one rubbing a knot on the top of his head. Konoe chuckles as the older boy raises his voice at the younger one. _"This should be good for Negi-kun. He needs another friend here that is around his age. Hopefully this will keep him from getting homesick."_ The Headmaster walks over and stands between the two boys, stopping their little quarrel before it hardly has time to begin.

"Oh yes, before I forget, your bags are ready to be brought over. I managed to get that out of my phone call in between the yelling."

Both boys chuckle nervously as the old man pulls out a piece of chalk and a small vial before drawing a magic circle on the office floor. After finishing his work, he empties the vial onto the floor with what appears to be dirt before bringing his heel down onto the middle of the circle, causing the circle to illuminate the room and a slight wind to pick up. After a few seconds, the light and wind subside with only a couple of leather bags where the magic circle was scrawled.

"So they got that spell right...impressive." Negi stares at the bags in amazement as Clyde tosses both of them over his shoulder. "A teleportation circle that works halfway across the world...wow."

"Eh, it isn't so amazing." Clyde haphazardly retorts as he rummages through a cabinet in the room, pulling out his old clothes. "So far, they can only make one shot ones like you just saw. Plus, you need to have something from near the other circle to make it work. That's why Headmaster-sensei had to use that vial of dirt. Then again, it worked well enough for me to move back and forth this last time, so I guess it is at least slightly interesting."

"Negi-kun." Konoe calls out to the young wizard, snapping out of his impressed state. "Mr. Metro and myself still have a few things to work out. You're dismissed for now."

"Yessir."

Negi bows and makes his leave, being the second person to do so from the room, as Asakura works her way through the vents back towards the restroom, grinning like the Cheshire Cat the entire way back. _"Heh. The way that little circle worked with the light and the sound effects, it was practically begging for me to take a snapshot. Now then, how should I break the news to my two little stars?"_

* * *

Negi walks along the sporting fields after his meeting, lost deep in thought, having even more questions after the meeting than before.

_"Why haven't they figured out a punishment for me? It isn't like I did anything too terrible. Like Clyde said, the only thing that was hurt by that were all those demons, and they surely wouldn't look at that as a negative back in Wales. At least they aren't going to turn me into an ermine...I guess that's good for a start."_

The young teacher continues on his way, waving to his students as he walks. After a couple of minutes, he hears a thumping sound on his briefcase. Confused, Negi quickly opens it to find an ermine gasping for breath.

"Oh, hello Chamo." Negi cheerfully quips as the little creature fills his lungs with air. "Um, how exactly did you get in my briefcase?"

"Aniki, you know what? If you keep this up, I'm going to have to call the Humane Society on ya! First it was the launching me into a dumbbell, now it's tossing me in your case as you scramble to get ready for class!" Chamo drops his angry routine and softens his voice to avoid any unwanted attention. His composure returned, he scurries up Negi's arm and perches on his shoulder. "Ah, I'm just messing with you. Today, I stowed away on purpose. I had a feeling something big was going to happen today, and boy, was I right!"

"Wow, Chamo! How could you tell?"

"Um...it's a sixth sense with us ermines! Yep!" If Negi was able to get a good look at the ermine, he would notice the large sweatdrop beading on his head. Odds are that Negi would be less impressed if he found out that Chamo stowed away so he could get a closer drop off to the girls locker room. It's a shame, really, that the boy didn't have to open up his briefcase for any reason today. Oh well, where there's a will, there's a way. Chamo decides to change the topic before Negi can have a chance to notice anything off. "So, where we off to now?"

"Well, I'm going to Master's cabin to find out why she hasn't been in school the past two days." Negi pauses, a look of worry etched on his face. "I do hope there isn't anything wrong. I haven't even bothered to check with her for training. What if she's mad at me?"

Having passed the fields, Chamo takes the opportunity to light up a cigarette before speaking up again. "Well, the worst that could happen to you is that she will drain all of your blood and probably do something to your body to hide the puncture marks as to avoid suspicion. Maybe slash you, or cut your hea..."

Chamo pauses, noticing that they aren't making any forward progress and that Negi is kneeled on the ground, obviously in fear of the ermine's scenario. "Eh, I think I took it a little bit too far..." Chamo sighs before attempting to console the young mage. "Aniki, I said 'worst that could happen.' Besides, the full moon isn't for another week or so. Plenty of time for you to patch up."

Negi picks himself off the ground, gulping in fear, Chamo's little "pep talk" having not much of a positive effect on the young wizard. "I only skipped out on lessons the last two days, and that was with good reason. Besides, Evangeline and myself have gotten along a lot better. She wouldn't kill me...I don't think so, anyways..."

After a few more minutes of hiking, the duo reaches their destination. Negi takes a deep breath to try to compose himself before knocking on the wood door. After a few seconds, the door is answered, much to Negi's regret, by aforementioned vampire, her look of disinterest going to one of rage upon locking gazes. No matter how much he's trained with her, he still hasn't gotten used to Evangeline when she is furious...and for whatever reason, now seems to be one of those times.

"Great. What do you want, Negi?" After a couple of seconds of the boy trying to bulk up on his courage, Evangeline speaks up again. "You came here to waste my time apparently...oh, I get it. This is about me skipping out on your little class, isn't it?"

Negi nervously nods before being brave enough to reply. "Y...Yes, that is one of the things I wanted to speak to you about. Also, um...I wanted to apologize for missing out on our training the last two days. It's just that with everything that has been going on, I needed to be there for the other students. Sorry, Master."

The vampire looks on, now sporting an amused smirk. "Master? Where in the world would you get an idea like that? What would make you think that I would train you? And what has happened in the last couple of days that would make you skip out on our imaginary training?"

Negi freezes in confusion, thoughts racing through his head. _"I know that she somehow drank that potion, but what is going on? Clyde said is was only supposed to erase the past day or so. It's like Evangeline had the last few months erased."_ Deciding to forage on, Negi speaks up again. "Are you feeling alright, Master? I think that you're a little confused..."

The smirking vampire now has the look of anger scowled across her face yet again as she grasps the collar of Negi's shirt.

"Now listen here, "Teacher." I don't know what kind of a game you are trying to play, but it is getting old fast. I've left you alone the past couple of months, but if you keep insisting on irritating me, that will soon change. I'm feeling generous today, so if you leave now, I'll let you be for the time being." Evangeline chuckles slightly. "Maybe I'll even show up for your precious little class tomorrow."

Eva releases her grasp on the boy and turns about, bumping into Chachamaru as she does so. The vampire glares at her servant, frustrated for smacking into her before speaking.

"See the Professor off the porch, Chachamaru."

Negi and Chamo both sigh in relief as the vampire storms off into the cabin. Feeling a little safer talking with Chachamaru, the young wizard speaks up.

"Chachamaru, could you please try to talk some sense into her? Surely she can't be forgetting the past few months."

"I'll try, Negi-sensei. I'm unsure as to why she is failing to remember the past as well. I am sorry that Master wasn't in a better mood today."

Negi smiles as he waves his arms to dismiss the robot girl's thought. "Oh, no need to apologize, Chachamaru. It isn't your fault, after all."

"...Understood. Good day, Negi-sensei. Good day, Chamo-san."

Negi sighs in defeat as the two walk back towards the dorms, the ermine lighting up another cigarette.

"Well, that probably could have went better, wouldn't you say, aniki?"

"Yes it could have...is it really necessary that you smoke that so close to my face?"

"Ah, I'm sorry Negi. It's just that those two still give me the creeps. If she's really lost her memory, that could spell trouble with the next full moon. You're going to have to be careful, y'know?"

The teacher nods, remembering his last encounter against Evangeline all too well. Given what he had seen from her in Kyoto, Negi knows he's in a world of hurt if the vampire decides to cut loose a little more in their next battle. The boy is snapped back to reality as he hears voices growing ever closer. He quickly yanks the cigarette from the ermine's mouth and stomps it out, putting his finger over Chamo's mouth to keep him from protesting. Glancing ahead, Negi is able to make out the cause of the noise. A ragged looking Clyde is walking, well, being dragged by his coat pockets to be more exact, by the Narutaki Twins. Closely behind is a chuckling Chizuru and a concerned looking Natsumi.

"Chizu-ne, are you sure that Clyde's going to be okay being pulled around campus like this?"

The brown haired girl chuckles as the twins continue to point out various things of interest to the new student, who is doing his best to keep up with the duo.

"Oh, he'll be fine. Fuka and Fumika aren't going to kill him. Besides, Clyde-kun was going to need the tour sooner or later."

"Look over there, Clyde-kun! That's..." Fuka pauses as she notices Negi walking towards the little group. The girls release their captive and run to greet said teacher.

"Good evening, Negi-sensei!" The twins cheerfully quip in unison as a heavy breathing Clyde and smiling Chizuru and Natsumi pull up the rear.

"Hello, girls. I hope you're not being too troublesome for Clyde-san."

"Us, trouble?" Fumika replies innocently.

"We're never any trouble!" Fuka backs up her sister before both girls look at Clyde.

"Right?"

The blonde boy chuckles and puts an arm on each of the girls' shoulders. "No trouble at all. They are actually pretty helpful."

"See, Negi-sensei?" The girls giggle as Negi smiles back. "You see, we found Clyde-kun on a triple date with Chizuru, Natsumi, and the rep and thought we'd tag along!"

The following comment makes Natsumi and Clyde's eyes shoot open as wide as saucers and both wave their arms in denial while Chizuru just smirks and chuckles. Negi, meanwhile, has a similar look on his face as the ones on Natsumi and Clyde's. He knows that Clyde can be a little brash, but taking three girls out? At the same time? The same day? Chamo would be proud...heck, Chamo is proud, as anyone that would be paying attention could see the ermine applauding on Negi's shoulder.

"Yeah!" Fumika follows up as she pats Clyde on the head. "Rep must have gotten embarrassed, because she ran off in a hurry after we said that!"

"It's a misunderstanding!" Natsumi pleads the group's case, trying her hardest to contradict the twins. "And Ayaka ran off because she likes N...eh?"

Natsumi is cut off as she is wrapped in a big hug by Chizuru, being muffled by her chest.

"There, there, Natsumi. That's enough for one day. Fuka and Fumika are just playing a prank."

The brown haired girl smiles broader as she crushes Natsumi harder with her hug. Negi sweatdrops, Clyde blinks a couple of times and stares, Chamo can be heard panting, and the twins...

"What's wrong with you two? Are you sick?"

"You're thinking dirty thoughts, aren't you Negi-kun? You want to have a triple date too, don't you?"

The last comment does little to help the young teacher regain his composure as he waves his arms begin flailing faster and faster as the redness in his cheeks increases.

"I'm an English gentleman, girls! I have no interest in my students as it relates to romance!"

The two girls consult with each other before turning back to Negi, looks of shock etched on their faces. Negi opens his mouth to say something, but is cut off as the twins begin bawling as if on cue.

"Negi-sensei doesn't like us!"

"Negi-sensei said nobody will love us!"

"Um...uh, I'm going to go do homework. See you all in class tomorrow!" Clyde takes the opportunity to get while the getting is good. Natsumi, free of the awkward grasp of her roommate, quickly scours her brain for an excuse to get out of the train wreck that Negi unintentionally caused as well.

"I'd better see how Ayaka is doing. She...er, looked a little ill when she left us. C'mon Chizu-ne, we'd better go check in on her."

Natsumi turns to her friend, who is calmly shaking her head.

"Go on ahead. I'll see if I can help Negi-sensei out of his little situation."

Natsumi nods and begins walking away. She takes a final glance over her shoulder to see a blubbering Negi who now has a pair of ball and chains around both ankles in the form of the twins. Everybody in the trio seems to calm down as Chizuru pats the twins on the back and starts talking. Natsumi smiles and continues back.

"Nice save for Negi-sensei, Chizu-ne."

* * *

The boy teacher takes a deep breath as he sinks deeper into the warm waters of the onsen. Normally, taking a bath would be the last thing on his to-do list on any day, something that he would have to be forced into by Asuna. But tonight, there was no persuasion needed by his roommate, as the boy has figured that this will be one of the few places he could get some peace and quiet in order to sort things out. That's what the original plan was, but has seemingly ran into a snag in the form of Clyde and Chamo, both of whom are cracking jokes in between them. Negi sighs in frustration, sinking into the water up to his nostrils by this time.

"Aniki, if you sink into that water any lower, you're going to wind up drowning yourself."

Chamo chuckles as he pulls a zippo out of seemingly nowhere to fire up another cigarette.

"Yeah, Negi. No offense to you or anything, but I'd much prefer to give mouth to mouth to one of the cuties at the school, not you."

"I like this guy, aniki! He's got a good head on his shoulders!"

"You're pretty cool as far as familiars go as well, Chamo. Negi could learn a lot from you, if he would only listen..."

"I think he'll be fine as soon as his hormones kick in, don't you Clyde?"

"Yeah. Then he can appreciate the finer things in life and stop being so uptight around girls."

The pair stops talking as they hear the sound of bubbles snapping. Glancing over, they notice that the cause is Negi fuming while underwater. Finally his head snaps out of the water as well as his composure.

"I'm not uptight around girls! I'm a sensei, not boyfriend material!"

The young teacher takes deep breaths to calm himself down as the older boy and ermine exchange looks.

"Hey now, no need to get pissed." Clyde grins as he slaps Negi on the back. "It's okay to think of them as more than students. Hell, you do have pactios with all of them, after all."

Negi is about ready to raise his voice at his two companions, but stops in confusion as the last few words sink in.

"...Pactios...with all the girls? I'm not sure I follow."

Chamo raises an eyebrow as he takes a drag. The ermine chuckles and shakes his head as he pulls out a deck of cards, seemingly out of nowhere again. Clyde trudges through the water, grabbing a water bottle out of his bag before looking at the cards that the ermine is currently shuffling through. The older boy just smiles and shakes his head in amazement as he looks through the deck.

"I know I already submitted my report, but that is still pretty damn impressive. I didn't even think it was possible to form pactios with things that aren't even alive. A robot and a ghost...damn, I'm sad that I got demoted from Observer, but happy because I get to see more of these interesting things firsthand."

"Am I missing something? I was thinking that those pactios wouldn't really count since I technically didn't go back to the past." Negi makes his way through the bath and glances through the set.

"Look, you should be pretty happy that nothing negative happened. We were lucky enough to have time more or less put a band aid on itself. We could have messed up the whole world if we weren't as careful as we were, aniki."

Clyde nods in agreement at the ermine's statement before continuing for him. "You thought that just because we skipped through time that the only thing changed would be a bunch of demons biting it? Sorry, but those pactios are just as real as they were."

"Well, I don't suppose it's bad as long as I don't bring the girls into danger." Negi muses as he lathers up his red hair. "If worse comes to worse, we could always break the pactios, right?"

"Well, I suppose we could..." Chamo replies as he puts out his cigarette, "...but doing that would require me to draw up a circle and having the both of you there to undo it. We'd have to do that with all of the girls, and some of them I don't think would go too wild over that. Plus, their memories would have to be erased from the tragic heartbreak that you would wind up inflicting on them..."

"Heartbreak?" Negi's face blanches as he thinks of the idea of 3-A breaking down in tears, one student at a time. Sure, they wouldn't remember anything, but unfortunately for the boy teacher, he would. "...We don't need to do that. I think it will be just fine."

Chamo and Clyde glance at each other, flipping the other a wink and a quick thumbs up as they do so. So nice when people are young and gullible. Something Negi will more than likely grow out of eventually, much to the chagrin of the ermine. Clyde quickly drains his water bottle, tossing it back into his bag before continuing. "Of course, there really isn't much you can do about the copies that were planted onto the girls, but you could probably just pass that off as a party favor or something if anybody asks. Besides, it isn't like they are going to know how to activate them."

"That's really great for all of us, aniki!" Chamo pipes in while stifling laughter. "Can you imagine how bad it would be to have a whole class of girls wandering around toting magic artifacts? It would be ermine city for you two, and worst of all, what would happen to me?"

"They could make you into a smaller ermine. Make you ride in a thimble." Negi retorts, seemingly relaxed enough now to be able to crack jokes with the rest of the group. The trio continue to come up with scenarios and continue their laughter.

"...oh man, that would be horrible, but not as bad as if..."

Clyde is cut off from his little joke as one of the pactio cards is held in front of his face.

"What, Chamo? I've already seen all of these cards. That girl is pretty ho..."

Clyde shuts up again as he notices that Chamo is sitting on Negi's shoulder, both of whom have looks of fear locked onto their faces. Clyde slowly looks up, eyes nearly shooting out of his head as he locks stares with the smiling school reporter.

"Wow! This is incredible! This thing is really magic!?" Asakura happily jumps up and down, clutching the card to her chest, giving the boys time enough to cover up. Negi climbs up out of the water and makes a lunge for his staff as the happy paparazzi puts her hands on Clyde's shoulders.

"So how do I use this thing, Clyde-kun? You need to tell me for my story!"

"St...Story?" Clyde chuckles nervously at the beaming girl. "We could always just keep this as a little secret. Secrets are good, right?"

"Not this one! The tape, the picture of that circle the Headmaster made, the card that is magical, and now an interview with the stars of my article! We're going to be rich! Help me help all of us...eh?"

Asakura stops mid-speech as she notices Negi walking closer to her, pointing his staff at her head.

"You gotta wipe her mind, aniki! We don't have a choice!"

"Hmm." Negi nods and continues getting closer to his mark. "I'm terribly sorry about this, Asakura-san, but it's for the best."

"Wipe my mind...?" Asakura ponders, putting her index finger to her lips as she thinks. "Yeah, that could work...but I bet I could still remember to push this button before you do that."

The red haired girl quickly pulls a cell phone out of her camera bag and waves it at Negi. "I don't have the full story yet, but I have enough information to make a splash. Maybe we should talk before you do something you regret, Negi-sensei."

Negi does as he's told, slowly lowering his staff and keeping his gaze locked with the still excited reporter. She glances back towards the water, where Clyde has his eyes locked on her as well.

"Hmm...are you staring because you're wary, Clyde-kun? Or..." Asakura chuckles lightly, making the trio of males all raise their brows. "...are you thinking about our little encounter a couple of nights ago? As big as my assets may be..." Clyde's face turns red before he slaps his forehead down into his palm. "...that wasn't the reason I weighed so much...which was rude of you to say, but I'll let that slide, considering you saved me from a face plant. Maybe when this is all said and done, I'll take you up on that dinner and movie bit." Clyde at this point is shaking his head and still blushing, having been busted in a compromising position. "You didn't notice my camera pouch, did ya? Silly...Observer, wasn't it? Yep, I think that's what you said you were." The girl kneels down and whispers into Clyde's ear now. "Did you like what you ended up grabbing? You know, I'm not sure what Naba-san left you in that little letter, but I am very open to suggestions as well."

Clyde's eyes nearly pop out of his head again as he moves his hand under his nose and tips his head upwards, not wanting to lose a large amount of blood twice in a single day. Asakura laughs and pulls out a cloth from the boy's bag. "They were right in class. You do have a dirty mind. I was only kidding with you! Just trying to lighten the mood here."

Clyde takes deep breaths and manages to compose himself. "OK, let's just be reasonable about this." The boy pulls himself out of the water as well and rummages through his bag, pulling out a small glass and a soda bottle. "Here, have a drink while you figure out how you want to destroy Negi and my lives."

Asakura raises an eyebrow at Clyde as he hands her the filled glass. "What is it?"

"It's soda, silly girl." She looks at the canteen and then the glass, filled up with a brownish colored fluid. "What? You've never heard of Pepsi before?"

Asakura shrugs and drinks the glass down. "I'm not trying to destroy your lives. I'm trying to help them. Keeping secrets is never good, Clyde-kun. If you and Negi are able to come clean, you won't have to worry about the pressure of covering your secret up. Plus,  
think of all the money! We'll all be loaded!"

"Money isn't everything, Asakura-san." Negi replies as he pats the girl on the back. "If you do this, Clyde and myself will be turned into ermines...or with all of the chaos that the truth would bring, Clyde and myself may end up worse."

"They wouldn't do anything to you if they couldn't find you, right?" Asakura asks as she smiles right in Negi's face. "You two could mo...whoa..."

The redhead gal staggers backwards in a daze, her phone dropping from her right hand. Before it can shatter, Chamo manages to run under it, catching it in his tiny paws.Asakura still stumbles about, falling backwards and being caught by the former Observer.

"Man, I wish I didn't have to do that." The boy moans in frustration as he shakes his head sadly. "She would have gone on that date with me too! A date with the cutest paparazzi I've ever seen and it's shot down the tubes! The light at the end of the tunnel caved in. Game over before it even had a chance to get plugged into the system! Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that we were able to keep our secret, but it's still not fair that..."

Negi and Chamo shake their heads as Clyde continues to lampoon over his loss.

"Negi, does he always do that?" Chamo asks, looking over to see the boy smacking his hand on the ground in frustration. Negi chuckles and rubs the back of his head.

"It's something to get used to Chamo, that's for sure...Clyde? We should probably take her back to her dorm"

* * *

Clyde mutters under his breath as he approaches the old clocktower. So close and yet so far away._ "Oh well, there will be other opportunities probably."_ The full moon looks down on the boy as he continues his lonely journey, the wind gently gusting through his hair and the moonlight shimmering off of the bag slung over his shoulder. He makes his way up the stairs of the clocktower and leans up against one of the walls, reaching into one of his bags to pull out his green cloak. Clyde is just about to nod off to sleep when he notices a transparent face in front of him.

"I'm sorry Clyde-san. Kazumi kind of jumped me about you and Negi-sensei." Sayo looks down sadly, hoping that the two boys aren't too upset. Clyde's face slowly turns from a look of frustration to a smile.

"Ah, it's fine. It's my fault to begin with. I should have cleaned up a little better before I left. Video cameras are a wizard's worst enemy, after all. I hated to ruin her big story, but Negi and I don't really want to become ermines either. She seems a good enough reporter.  
I'm sure something big will come along for her."

Sayo smiles back, relieved that the two understood her situation. A little tough to lie and make excuses when there's a tape proving otherwise.

"So, um, what all did you do?"

"Well, Chamo took care of the stuff on her phone and deleted some of the pictures off of her camera. You know, for being an ermine, he sure seems to know a bit about electronics. Negi managed to find the tape that busted us in the first place after a bit of searching. Yeah, I think that we're going to be fine. My only regret about today is that the Headmaster still hasn't found a room for me yet. No offense Sayo, but I don't want to stay in this tower the whole time like a gargoyle."

"None taken." The ghost girl smiles as she fades into nothingness. "Good night, Clyde-san."

Clyde adjusts himself and gets as comfortable as he can. "Good night, Sayo-san"

* * *

A few hours later, Asakura begins to get her bearings back. She slowly sits up on her bed, holding her pounding head in her hands. After a few moments, she feels something strange resting on her chest. She unbuttons her shirt and pulls a thin cord and recorder out.

"What the hell...? Was I working on a scoop or something?"

The girl rewinds the tape and holds it up to her ear. After a few seconds, her eyes shoot open in shock. Shaking her head in disbelief, Asakura digs under her bed, pulling out a shoebox. After rummaging about, she pulls out a tape and pops it in her VCR. As the glow of the television consumes Asakura, she begins chuckling to herself. _"The way things look, I think that Sayo and myself are going to have ourselves a little chat tomorrow..."_

* * *

**Author's Notes:** And so, another chapter (finally) comes to an end. Sorry about all of the scene changes, but it's the best way I could figure it out to work without using a lot of words. 7500-plus for the story was enough, I think Don't want to bore anyone to death with a mountain of a chapter. Anyways, like I said at the end of the last chapter, the story is going to start picking up from here on out, so for those of you reading, there's a little something to look forward to. Kudos to DarkDragonDave for the new review. As for a couple of points of interest, those who have ideas for my story or want to point something out, there's one more way to get ahold of me. Drop me a line on AIM at Jack Midnight 04. According to the registration, I guess I'm not the original Midnight Sleeper...what a drag. Ah well. Also, based on what you've seen so far, where would you like to see Clyde wind up at? Is there someone you'd think he'd click with? A personal favorite you would love to see get more keystrokes thrown their way? Let me know. Honestly, I'd like to use my audience's feedback to pick a winner rather than rolling dice or drawing cards like I've been doing for things so far. If you want an extra incentive, March 3 just so happens to be my birthday, so it would really make me a happy birthday boy if you would leave a little feedback, whether it is something towards the story or where you want to see Clyde wind up. I can read stats as well as anybody, so I know that my chapters get hits, so even just one or two words for a name would be appreciated.

See all of you with Chapter 5 :)

**_-Midnight_**


	5. Fieldwork of a Wizard Part 1: Entrapped

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima in any way, shape, or form. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only thing that I own are my ideas and my OC, Clyde Metro, so please don't sue. It kind of defeats the purpose of me on hiatus from college to save money if I end up losing all of it.

**Author's Note:** Sorry for it being a little longer than my last updates have been. Flu bug finally caught up with me, so yeah, I had my past few days of misery. :P Moving on, my poll from the last chapter is still up and kicking, though maybe I should have elaborated a little better. Which dorm do you want to see Clyde wind up in? A character you want to see more of? A character you think would click with our feather hatted friend, a character that you would love to see driven nuts by our feather hatted friend? Lemme know. Like I said in the last chapter, I would much prefer to work off of the ideas of my readers than to look at the class roster and roll off numbers from the dice I swiped out of my Monopoly game. As for polls, there will be another thing to vote for at the end of this one that I guarantee will greatly influence the way this story goes, so please drop me those e-mails and PM's guys and gals. 1500 hits doesn't lie, so I know there's two or three people that are reading this :P Sorry for the little rambling. Let's move along now, eh?

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

And a new one...

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells. (Yeah, Midnight found himself a nice translation site and isn't afraid to use it)

Last but not least, props to Mike5tone and my buddies at the Train Station, The Ansem Man and Eternal-Longing for the review love.And for those of you keeping score, it seems like I came out of my birthday no worse for the wear. :D On with the story!

**Negima: Fallout**

** Chapter 5**

Negi breathes in deeply, trying as hard as he can to keep what little wits he has together. The day has started off with heartbreak after heartbreak, waking up in his dorm room, which was ablaze. The boy had tried to look for his roommates, finding only Konoka, crushed in her bed as the ceiling above had come crashing down...his best guess anyways, as the only thing he could make out was some blood-matted brown hair sticking out from around where the headboard was. Not being able to do anything for his friend, Negi muttered a quick prayer for her before bolting out the doorway of the room to look for any other survivors.

The young boy's heart sank even further as he walks into the hellish blaze that the hallway has become. Shouting in vain for what seems like an eternity, Negi begins to use his wind magic to blast down doors, flames intensifying with every gust, Negi breaking down more and more inside with each door opened. For in every single room Negi searched, tragedy awaited to be found. A burnt husk of what used to be a person, more that were crushed, ones who looked as they were trying to escape their rooms, blood marks on the insides of some doors from being repetively pounded on during a young girl's desperate attempt at escape. With nothing left to save, the young boy made his way out of the inferno that the building has now become and glances outside, the jet sky being illuminated by the burning dorm and from a large tree ablaze on top of a hill. Feeling drawn towards the World Tree, the young mage made his way towards it, despite every impulse in his mind screaming at him to stay away.

Despite the desire to run, Negi still continued towards his goal, only the crackling of fire and the wind slowly gusting filling his ears. He finally made his way up the hill to the World Tree, where he has been dropped to a knee at the spectacle in front of him. Negi breathes in deeply, trying as hard as he can to keep what little wits he has together, and failing miserably due to the sight in front of him. Through the flames of the tree branches, he can't see the body, but knows exactly who it is from the hair ribbon and set of bells lying at the base of the tree, a pool of blood slowly pooling around them as it flows down the tree trunk. Negi stares at the hair decorations in shock, unable to muster any more tears after the amount he has already given in such a short time. The boy's look of shock and disbelief turns to one of complete rage as a figure emerges from behind the tree. Slightly taller than an average man, but definitely not human, as proven by the figure looking as a silhouette despite the blaze of the World Tree only a few feet behind him. Negi picks himself up and charges at the entity, being stopped dead in his tracks as a dark hand is clutched around his throat. The figure chuckles as it picks the mage off of the ground, making him gasp for air, the only distinguishable features being a saw toothed grin and a pair of dim red orbs where the eye sockets would be.

"Negi Springfield...not impressive at all." The figure's sadistic smile growing ever broader as he gradually increases the tightness of his grasp. "And here I thought you were going to protect everybody? Hah! What a pathetic joke. Who would ever be foolish enough to entrust their lives to you? Well, I guess all of those young ladies did, but it seems that they paid for that foolishness, wouldn't you say?"

Negi feels himself fading fast and tries to utter a response, but is unable to because of the grasp around his throat continually growing ever tighter.

"I know what you're thinking, Negi Springfield." The figure replies as he gently sways the boy side to side. "Why would I do such a terrible thing? The answer is simple. I butchered your precious students because I can. If you weren't such a pathetic excuse of a sorcerer, maybe you could have stopped me...no, you couldn't have stopped me, but at the very least, may have given me a bit of sport. You should really choose your Ministra Magi a little better. In all the panic, your little redhead friend was the only one that managed to make it here to meet her demise. If it's any consolation to you Negi, you will be seeing all of them very soon..."

And with that last sentence, the figure clenches his hand into a fist around Negi's neck, a loud snap ending the monotony of the fire cackling and wind blowing. The boy's eyes roll into the back of his head before his lifeless body is dropped to the ground. And then...

* * *

A loud scream echoes through the dorms followed by equally loud sobs. Negi's face being contorted in a look of utter terror as he thrashes under his covers, as if being chased by something unseen. 

"Negi! Wake up!"

"Negi-kun! Are you okay!?"

"Aniki! Snap out of it!"

Asuna's worry finally gets the best of her as she climbs on top of the terrified teacher and shakes him in an attempt to rouse him. After a few more seconds of shaking and pleading, Asuna is finally able to snap the young boy out of his nightmare. Negi quickly looks around the room in horror as tears fill his eyes. Seeing everything the way it should be, he wraps the red haired girl in a bearhug.

"Asuna! You're okay!"

The girl exchanges confused looks with Chamo and Konoka before turning back to the sobbing boy wrapped around her, returning his embrace.

"Of course I am, Negi. Why wouldn't I be?"

The tears slowly subside as Negi looks about the room. No fire, no chaos, and certainly no death. The boy sighs in relief as he eases up on his hold.

"Oh thank goodness. It was horrible!"

"Do you want to talk about it, Negi-kun?" A concerned Konoka pipes in as she pats Negi's head. "Sometimes that helps to make it better."

"I think I'll be okay." Negi replies as a small smile cracks his face. "Thank you all for being concerned. It was just a nightmare."

"Um...Negi?" Asuna taps the relieved boy on the shoulder as he continues to hold the hug. "You mind letting me go so I can get to work?"

"Oh! Sorry, Asuna."

Negi releases his clutch on the red haired papergirl and tries to settle back down into his bed. Konoka adjusts the boy's covers before going back to saw logs for a couple more hours. Asuna watches as Negi slowly begins to nod off again, a smile breaking across her face as she goes into the restroom to change.

* * *

Sunlight is almost completely basking Mahora as Asuna tosses her last paper into it's rightful box. She sighs, elated to be back in her old predictable routine if only for awhile, only to be broken out of her moment of nirvana as rapid footsteps grow louder behind her. The girl turns slowly to see who or what is approaching, being knocked to the ground by the figure, apparently completely oblivious to anything in front of it. 

"Hey! Watch where you're going, mo..." Asuna stops mid phrase as she notices just who knocked her over, that being a very scared looking Clyde. "Well, I'm glad to see this is going to be a crappy day."

"Crappy day? Aw, now it certainly can't be that bad, bumping into little old me." The boy chuckles, the look of fear on his face temporarily gone. "Now come on, we gotta hide."

"Hide?" Asuna doesn't have time to get anything else out of her mouth as she is quickly grabbed around the wrist, picked off the ground, and drug into some nearby bushes.

"Okay. Good. Hopefully she doesn't find me here." Clyde sighs in relief before yelping in pain from being punched in the head by a very irritated Asuna.

"What the hell is wrong with you!?" The now seething girl yells as Clyde rubs the knot on his head. "First you knock me out, then you shoot me with a dart, and now..."

Clyde quickly puts his hand over Asuna's mouth, muffling her argument for the time being. The mage winces in pain as he feels the angry girl biting into his palm, but is able to withstand the pain and keep his grasp.

"Ow...ow...OK, you need to put away the fists of fury, crossbite, and unbridled rage for a minute. We have a big problem here, Asuna-san." Asuna stops trying to rip the boy's hand off with her mouth, letting him pull his hand away and hold it in pain. The girl is quiet, but from the look on her face, obviously isn't too pleased with having to deal with Clyde this early in the morning.

"Fine. What's the "big problem?" Asuna mutters dryly, the look of displeasure on her face showing no signs of evaporating.

"Uh...well, Negi and myself seem to suck at erasing minds..."

"Yeah, it took you that long to figure that out? Negi told us all about the little onsen mishap you three had last night."

Clyde rolls his eyes at the lovely bit of sarcasm tossed his way before continuing. "Yeah, glad to see you're taking this seriously...anyway, someone still knows our little secret."

"Yeah." Asuna mutters as she stands up from their hiding spot. "Konoka, Setsuna, Ku Fei, Kaede, Evangeline, Chachamaru, Sayo, and Tatsumiya-san. They've all been in the loop since our class trip to Kyoto or even before. What's your point?"

Clyde rolls his eyes in frustration as he pulls Asuna back down behind the bushes.

"No no no! I know that those girls already knew! Someone else knows. Someone worse..."

"Wow! All of them knew before I did? I must be as bad at picking up scoops as you two are at hiding."

"...She found out...again!" Clyde sighs in defeat as him and Asuna turn towards the voice, of course to see it coming from a grinning Asakura. Asuna gulps in fear, knowing just how fast the story would spread across campus. She grabs the collar of Clyde's shirt and pulls him over.

"Why the hell didn't you erase her mind again? Or maybe a little better the first or second times!?"

Clyde holds his ear in agony as Asuna waits for an answer. Even when whispering, the girl finds a way to inflict pain.

"I can't do that. Erasing someone's short term memory too often in such a short amount of time could completely wipe their long term memory as well. Plus, how am I supposed to do anything when she hid my belongings? I don't do incantations that well unaided."

"Well, how do you plan on keeping this from getting out!?"

"You aren't going to like this, so I'm just going to say 'sorry' right off the bat."

"Sorry for what?"

"Hey!" Asakura raises her voice at the whispering duo. "Help a girl out and give me some stuff to use, would ya?"

"Sorry, love." Clyde chuckles as he quickly snatches the reporter's camera bag before she can react. "I'd prefer you to give me some stuff to use, instead."

"Give that back!" Asakura whines as she lunges towards the blonde, who casually sidesteps and trips the girl, making her fall towards the ground. She manages to break her fall, but does so by unintentionally grabbing Asuna's...well, you know. Clyde laughs, giddy as a schoolgirl (one not named Asuna or Kazumi, anyways) as he snaps a shot of the compromising scene. Both girls sweatdrop, Asuna grimacing in pain as the reporter's hands lose grip and make her fall on top of the girl. Clyde sweatdrops and takes another photo of the girls, who are currently cheek to cheek.

"Nice." Clyde grins and flashes a victory sign as the two girls pick themselves up. "I'm sorry...Kazumi? Yeah, that's it. Anyways, I'm sorry Kazumi-chan, but you didn't leave me much of a choice. You've heard of blackmail, correct? If you feel compelled to blurt the secret that Negi and I have to the world, why, I may just feel compelled to showcase your little love affair to the world before I wind up spending the rest of my days running on a hamster wheel. I'm thinking we should both look the other way on this one. Does that sound like a good plan?"

Asakura shakes her head in frustration as the gears turn in her mind._ "Maybe I could...no, that wouldn't work...what if I...damnit, that's no good either...How about...get a hold of yourself, girl! You're way to young to be thinking of THAT and you have better judgment! Agh..."_

After a few more seconds of soul searching, the girl smiles and chuckles.

"You know what? I like your style, Clyde-kun! You could have a good future in the journalism business. We'd have to work a little bit on your integrity, but you got the instincts. I'll play, for now."

Clyde returns the smile and tosses the camera back to the reporter.

"And look at that. Since you went retro today, you can even have your camera back since I have the film. Aren't I a nice guy?"

"Heh." Asakura dusts herself off and walks off, snickering as she leaves a parting message for the toothy grinned boy. "You know that this isn't going to help your prospects with that dinner and movie bit though, right?"

Clyde sighs and slaps himself in the forehead. "That's swell. We just have to keep reminding me of my lack of romantic success...cripe." The boy is snapped out of his personal musings at the muttering of a single word.

"Adeat."

"Asuna! Heh, I told you I was going to apologize for a reason...that's a nice fan you got there, by the way...well, thank you for the help and all, but if you'll excuse me, I have to talk with the Headmaster about lodging and..."

* * *

"There, there. It's alright, Clyde-kun." Chizuru chuckles as she puts a bandage on the boy's arm, completing the set that would make one assume he had chicken pox. "So you fell down the stairs in the clocktower?" 

"Yeah..." Clyde whimpers as he notices Asuna's dagger shooting gaze locked on him.

"Wow, they're really getting along well." Makie observes as Chizuru puts a cold compress to a knot on Clyde's head.

"Well, he did go on a triple date with her, Natsumi, and Class Rep yesterday!" Fuka happily pipes in, raising eyebrows and drawing gasps from the entire classroom. "They must have really hit it off!"

"It's a misunderstanding!" Ayaka quickly points out, fuming that her classmates are trying to categorize her away from Negi. "Chizuru just wanted to make up for causing Clyde to..."

"...Nosebleed like you do? Does it mean your brain is trying to escape?" Asuna cuts off the blonde, causing a vein above her left eye to twitch uncontrollably.

"For your information, you knuckle dragging buffoon, it's because of the changing climate!"

"Sure...whatever you say, Ayucka."

And as quickly as the misconceived romance square between the roommates and Clyde had started, it disappeared in the heat of another Asuna VS Ayaka battle. Sakurako quickly sets up the odds and begins fielding the bets of lunch tickets and yen. Between the hair pulling and shouting, Ayaka is able to drag her rival towards the chalkboard, grabbing pair of erasers and clapping them on the redhead's cheeks.

"There we go, Asuna." The blonde laughs loudly as the aforementioned girl coughs from the chalk dust. "A little makeup is doing wonders to hide that facial hair!"

The smug look on Ayaka's face quickly disappears though as Asuna regains her bearings and grabs a couple of handfuls of blonde hair. The girl yelps in pain as she is drug down the row between desks. Asuna is pushed away, landing on top of Yue's desk. The blue haired girl sighs in frustration and puts her juice box down to re-sort her homework that had been scattered. She glances up long enough to see Asuna grab the juice box from the table and squeeze it over Ayaka's head, drenching the poor girl in a pineapple/apple/coconut blend. Baka Black blinks a couple of times in shock before shooting a glare to her fellow Ranger.

"Sorry Yue! But she had it coming"

"So who do you have ahead, Misa?" Sakurako asks as she continues to tally up wagers.

"Hmm...on my card, I have Ayaka up 10-9." The purple haired cheerleader cheerfully replies as she writes on a sheet of paper. "It's still pretty early though."

"Hey, small world!" Madoka quips as she looks at Misa's paper. "I have Asuna up 10-9...hmm...what are the odds?"

"Well, if you want to get technical, the odds would be...eh?"

The cheerleaders stop their conversation at the sound of a blubbering child sensei, trying and failing miserably to regain order in the classroom.

"Girls! Please not again! Last week, you broke two desks and I'm still trying to get the splinters out of my leg!" Negi tries to get in between the brawl, with both girls being too caught up in their confrontation to pay any mind to him. Negi continues to try to push the duo apart, eventually causing all three of them to fall to the ground.

"Ouch! And the referee is down!" Sakurako shakes her head at the pile in front of her, hoping against hope to avoid a split decision. Would be a shame to give back all of the tickets and yen, after all. The two girls eventually snap out of their daze and glance down at the boy that they are both currently sitting on.

"Negi-sensei! Oh my goodness! I am so sorry!" Ayaka bows her head rapidly as Asuna shakes her head.

"What a suck up..."

"I'm concerned for Negi-sensei! Unlike some people..."

"Heh. Well, it seems that everybody is in high spirits this morning."

The class all look towards the doorway to see a chuckling Takahata. "I'm your substitute for today...and from the look of Negi-sensei, that is probably a good thing. The Headmaster has something that might interest you, Negi-kun."

"Wha...?" Negi mutters confused as the two previously brawling girls pick him up to his feet. "Did I just have a nightmare?"

Takahata smirks and shakes his head. "Not quite...you there...student 32...Clyde Metro?"

Clyde's glance shoots up from the desk, distracting him from the pains of lacerations and bruises. "Yes, what can I do for you, sensei?"

"Would you mind escorting Negi-sensei to the offices? It seems you might need some help there as well."

"Ah, these old things? Nah, I think that I'll be..."

Clyde shuts up as he notices the man wink at him and slowly shoot his glance at the door.

"Oh! Yeah, maybe I should get checked over. C'mon, Negi-sensei."

Clyde gets up from his seat and helps to guide the still woozy teacher out of the room. Takahata's smile slightly evaporates as he turns to the class after shutting the door.

"Now as for you two...I trust that there isn't a problem, right?"

"N...Not at all, Takahata-sensei!" Asuna blushes and bows, getting a chuckle out of most of the class. A chuckle that quickly subsides as the substitute scans over the classroom.

"I'm glad to hear that. Now, if you'll open your books to page..."

* * *

"So you are serious...are you sure that they want to have me handle this job?"

The Headmaster nods calmly at the pair of boys seated in front of his desk, nonchalantly taking a sip of his tea.

"Of course I'm sure, Negi-kun. If I doubted that you were capable of this task, I would have raised my objections as soon as they informed me."

"So the both of us get pulled out of class in order for Negi to track down and apprehend some maverick mage?" Clyde ponders, twiddling his fingers ever so slightly. "Well, I suppose it is a little more entertaining than having to do book work."

"Well, actually..." Konoe begins, causing the boy to pay a little better attention. "They also had some research for you to do as well. Of course, that would be after you two apprehend this rouge." The old man glares at Clyde, stopping the boy from making a protest. "Like I said before, you are lucky to have avoided being changed into an ermine. I suggest that you just grin and bear it. Besides, you should feel flattered that they trust you with this research. Not exactly light stuff you'll be dealing with, it seems."

The Headmaster fumbles around in one of his desk drawers, pulling out a pair of envelopes and tossing one in front of both boys. The boys look through their respective folders. Clyde grimaces as he finds a white glove in the middle of all of his paperwork.

"Oh boy. A glove. Amazing..."

Konoe shakes his head in disappointment before responding. "Read your folder, Clyde-kun. Everything is explained in there. As for Negi-sensei, all of the information you need on the rouge mage should be in that folder. Scrying has revealed him to be hiding somewhere here at Mahora. Where exactly, we don't know. The only reason we know he is here is because the World Tree was seen in behind him."

"Hiding in one of the last places that someone in his position should..." Negi opens the folder and scans over a few of the papers inside. _"The World Tree...was my dream trying to tell me something? No, this person doesn't look anything like the image in my nightmare. Get ahold of yourself Negi. It was just a dream. Nothing more."_ After a few seconds, a confident smile comes across his face. "Alright! I'll do it, Headmaster-sensei!"

"Wonderful! I trust that you will be wary of just how you try to apprehend him as well. It wouldn't do well for either of you if magic blasts and conjurations began to pop up right in front of the academy, now would it?"

"Ah, we'll be careful, Headmaster-sensei!" Clyde grins, tucking his folder under his arm as he stands up. "We'll apprehend this schmuck in no time flat!" The boy's ear to ear grin shrivels into a modest chuckle as he notices Konoe and Negi staring at him. "Um...no disrespect or anything. Heh...sorry for the outburst...well, I think we should go track this guy down. Come on, Negi."

Clyde quickly grabs the younger boy's arm and drags him out of the office. Konoe chuckles at the sight, taking a sip of his tea and shaking his head as the door shuts.

"Hmm..." The old man muses, staring down at the ripples in his tea cup. "Maybe I should have told them that they weren't actually going after an actual mage...oh well. Adaptation is something that Negi-kun is going to have to learn sooner or later..."

* * *

After taking a few minutes to prepare themselves for their task, Negi and Clyde meet back up outside the front doors of the school, Negi decked out in more casual attire, Clyde stuck wearing his school uniform, sans the coat. It wouldn't do to draw any unwanted attention by parading about with a green cloak and matching feather hat, after all. The two boys look at each other, nod, and start down the stairs, prepared to begin their little search and destroy mission. After wandering a few feet from the building,Clyde speaks up.

"Alright...so, how we gonna find this guy?"

"Well, I guess the only thing we can do is try to sense him out." The boy replies as he scratches his cheek with his staff. "I've been here long enough that I've got a good feel on all of the regular magic users. Hopefully I can sense him out if I try hard enough."

"Well, that's good to know. Next question, where'd you get the threads?"

Negi blinks a couple of times, looking at his wardrobe he had finished changing into only a few minutes before. "Black T-shirt, red hooded overshirt, blue jeans, brown shoes...what about it?"

"How come you got a budget for clothing, food, whatever else and I didn't?"

The boy looks at Clyde with a confused look on his face. "Um...well, I guess it's because I'm only ten. Seeing as how you're older, maybe the council thought you could get a part time job...? Besides, why are we having this conversation anyways? We need to be focusing on the task at hand."

"Ah, just go ahead and take it easy, aniki!"

Both boys stop mid stroll as Chamo scurries out of Negi's hood and onto his shoulder. "With you and Clyde working together, this chump doesn't have a chance! You shouldn't worry so much about it, especially the whole talking quietly to yourself thing you were doing. You don't need to give yourself a pep talk. If worse comes to worse, we always have Ane-san and thirty other girls to back you up!"

"Chamo, I thought we agreed last night that I wouldn't get anyone involved unless we had to. Aside from the few that know my secret since Kyoto, everyone else needs to stay in the dark, right Clyde?"

Clyde chuckles to himself nervously as he thinks of the little encounter this morning, causing both Negi and Chamo to look at him strangely. "Yeah, about that..."

"Luckily (or unluckily), before Clyde can spill the beans about his little blackmail trick he started the morning with, the rouge hunting trio is stopped in their tracks by someone chuckling.

"Negi Springfield, son of the Thousand Master...I have to say, for your reputation, you sure look like a wimp."

The boys turn towards the voice of the taunt, slightly shocked by what they see. Sitting on a bench is what looks like a boy, not much older looking than Negi himself. The boy lifts the stocking cap on his head up slightly, shooting a grin and a glare at the young boy,  
patting what looks to be a small birdcage on his lap as he does so.

"This is the guy we're after? A kid? You're kidding me, right?" Clyde laughs, making the smirk on the prey's face sour into a scowl.

"And an idiot to go along with you...not amazing at all. Typical Western Mage mentality, to give magic training to any moron who wants it."

The boy stands up from the bench and walks away from the trio, breaking out into a run after a few steps. Negi and Clyde nod to each other and quickly give chase.

"Wait!" Negi exclaims as he weaves through teachers and students along the sidewalk, doing his best to avoid knocking anyone down. "There's no need for us to do this if you come peacefully!"

"Yeah! And who are you calling an idiot, you little punk!?" Clyde adds in as he continues his charge, accidentally knocking a girl over as he does so.

"Hey!" Clyde stops his sprint and goes back to help the girl up.

"I'm terribly sorry about that. Maybe I can make it up to you tonight over a movie?"

As Negi continues his pursuit, he hears a loud slap a few meters behind him. _"Well, it looks like Clyde is going to be a little behind. Now I'm definitely going to have to keep up."_ The boy continues his pursuit, muttering a spell under his breath as he does so._**"Phasmatis ventus, permissum mihi exsisto volatilis pes!"**_ As if on cue, Negi suddenly finds himself quickly closing the gap between him and the rouge, who noticing the boy wizard gaining on him, chuckles to himself and turns on a dime down an alleyway. Negi notices the rouge turn and works like mad to slow himself down to make the turn. Unfortunately for the boy, he isn't able to keep balance after cutting down on his speed and winds up skidding into a trash can. Amid the laughter and the gasps of concern from passing students, two of the girls make their way over to help pry the kicking teacher out of his predicament. The boy shakes the cobwebs out of his head and quickly takes after his mark, muttering a quick thanks as he continues his pursuit.

"Thank you very much girls. Um...I have to go now!"

The two girls look on in confusion as the pint sized professor sprints away. A couple of seconds later, another boy is found in the trash can as Clyde takes a dive, paying more attention to Negi bolting down an alleyway rather than the path ahead of him. More laughs and gasps follow as the duo once again plays the role of heroine by pulling a second stuck boy from the trash can. Clyde flashes the girls a thumbs up and sprints down the alley as well. The boy catches up soon after, as the alley has led to a dead end.

"I'm sorry that we have to do this to you, but we don't have a choice." Negi says to the boy, taking a couple of steps towards him. "If you don't mind me asking, what have you done that deserves you being captured?"

The boy laughs and waves the small cage in his hand. "Well, as for me being captured, talk about ironic. You see, Negi Springfield, I didn't come here just to be captured and taken away. No, I'm afraid it's going to be you instead!"

"Aniki! We gotta beat feet outta here!" Chamo screams, now aware of how the rouge intends to carry out his threat. "That cage is enchanted!"

"Heh. Glad to see that your weasel is observant there, but it's too late!"

The boy laughs as he tosses the door to the cage open, causing the now fleeing Negi, Chamo, and Clyde to gradually shrink, being reduced about to the size of ants before a vacuum emits from the open door, sucking the mini mages in. The capped boy laughs and closes the door before noticing the boys' good samaritans staring on in a look of shock.

"I really hate to do this a girl, let alone two, but I can't leave any witnesses to tip off our plans. Looks like you two get to come along for the ride!"

The two girls shriek in terror as the door to the cage opens again, with them suffering the same fate as the mages before them. With his task done, the boy laughs and pulls a dark blue cloth out of his pocket, covering up the cage and it's unconscious occupants, the smirk on his face never leaving as he calmly walks out of the alley.

* * *

"Wha...?"

Negi groans softly, holding the side of his head as he rolls over onto his back. His eyes squint shut as the glare of the sun can be seen radiating from between the cage bars. The boy picks himself up to his feet and looks about, noticing Clyde and Chamo behind him trying to figure a way out of the predicament. Clyde tries to charge out through the open air between the bars, but is abruptly stopped as an unseen force electrocutes the boy and tosses him back several feet. Chamo sighs and shakes his head at the sight. _"Hooboy...this one is going to be a doozy to get out of. This is some strong magic on this little cage. I don't know if Negi and Clyde even have enough in them to outpower this enchantment."_ Chamo looks over to see an irritated Clyde cracking his knuckles and stretching out his legs, apparently unwilling to give up on bullying the force field into submission.

"Oh, I wouldn't do that if I were you." Clyde facefaults in midrun at the distraction as Negi and Chamo immediately look at the cause of the voice, the latter two having their eyes nearly shoot out of their heads at the sight. Standing in front of the young wizard is the boy in black and with the stocking cap, and a sight next to him that makes Negi shudder. As if the stoic voice wasn't enough of a tip off, the gray hair and emotionless gaze locked on Negi was.

"I see that you and your ermine remember me, Negi Springfield." Fate coolly replies, the slightest smirk of amusement crossing his face. "As for your other three friends, well, they'll find out about me soon enough."

_"Three other friends? It was just Chamo, Clyde, and myself. Who..?"_

Negi slowly turns about and notices the pair of students that saved him from his predicament a short time before. A pair of his students, to be more precise. Negi groans slightly as he looks at the still unconscious girls. Something else to worry about if they can escape their current predicament, that's for sure. Negi's look shoots from his students towards his two foes, the boy in black tossing his cap to the side, revealing a pair of pointy ears mixed in with his black hair. The boy cracks his knuckles and twitches his ears before charging at Negi.

"Kotaro Inugami...although I don't think it's going to matter here in a few minutes. Enough talk, Negi! Time to fight!"

* * *

**Spell Translations:**

_**Phasmatis ventus , permissum mihi exsisto volatilis pes - **_Spirits of the wind, let me be swift of foot

**Story Notes:** Hope all of you enjoyed the read. For the little nightmare scene, the reason will become clear down the road in the next few chapters. Also, I figured now would be as good a time as any to introduce Kotaro since he wasn't involved in the anime at all. And what better way to do that than by bringing back an awesome villian in Fate Averruncus? Why are they here in Mahora? And what of their Kyoto comrades? Well, that's just something to wait on next chapter for, eh? Speaking of which, here's where the second poll I mentioned up top comes into play. What two lucky ladies got to be good samaritans and are now rewarded by being pulled into Negi's mage circle of trust? As I promised, this is definately going to play a big part in how the rest of the story shapes out. So get those keyboards clicking and let me know what you want to see, and not what my Monopoly dice want to. Chapter 6 will be up and kicking soon. See you all then!

-**_Midnight_**


	6. Fieldwork of a Wizard Part 2: War Zone

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are the storyline and my OC, Clyde Metro, so please don't sue. I'm broke anyways, so it wouldn't do a lot of good.

**Author's Notes**: Back in the saddle again! Feels good to post another chapter. Kudos to all of you that voted and gave me your two cents on which way you want this story to go. I knew that the Sports Club girls were popular and all, but damn. Just about every single email and PM I received had at least one of them as a nominee. So without further ado, let's see just which tandem out of that group gets to know Negi-sensei's little secret...and once again, thank you to everyone that voted. You guys rule. Have a cookie and some punch :)

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima Fallout****  
Chapter 6  
**

Negi gasps in shock, taken aback by the speed of his new found foe. He quickly sidesteps, feeling the wind from the force of the punch on his face. Unfortunately for the young boy, dodging the right hook put him in an unfavorable position as Kotaro catches him flush on the chin with a roundhouse kick, sending him flying into the rest of his companions. Grimacing in pain, Negi slowly picks himself up, using his staff to assist him.

"Fate, this isn't going to be much fun if this is all the better he can do." Kotaro mutters, partially out of boredom and partially out of spite. "I know western wizards are weak, but this is just pathetic!"

"I would strongly advise against underestimating him, Kotaro." Fate calmly replies as he watches the two mages pick themselves out of their little dog pile. "He doesn't have the vampire helping him this time, but he was still impressive on his own the last time I fought him. Just remember not to get too carried away and accidently killing him. We need him near death, not completely dead. It won't work otherwise."

_"What won't work otherwise? This isn't good at all_..." Negi takes a deep breath and thinks, wiping a small trickle of blood from his lip. "Clyde! We have to stop these two fast!"

The blonde boy chuckles and reaches into his left pocket, pulling out a withered rose. "I couldn't agree with you more, Negi. It's time to take out the trash!" Clyde holds onto the withered red petals and points the stem at Fate before uttering a pair of words.

**"Silva Vesica!"**

The flower's color immediately returns upon uttering those words and a sturdy branch emerges from the petals to act as a hilt. The rose petals multiply and grow in front of the hand, making a hand guard of a sword that is completed as a pair of thick stems entwine forward, eventually merging together at the end to form a point. Green quarter long thorns sprout from the blade, completing the weapon, a rapier Mother Nature would be proud of. Clyde chuckles as he walks towards Fate, stopping dead in his tracks as he hears a pair of voices behind him.

"W..Where are we, Yuna? And what did Clyde-san just do!?"

"I'm not sure, Ako...but that was cool!"

The two protagonist mages look at each other, a look of dread etched on their faces similar to the one they had when Asakura found out about magic. The pair slowly turns around further to see a confused and unfortunately alert pair of girls. Negi stammers and twiddles his fingers for a few seconds, not really looking forward to coming up with an explanation.

"Yuna-san, Ako-san...I know that this must be a little confusing...ok, really confusing, but I can assure you that there is a reasonable explanation. Clyde and I are...um...rehearsing! For the Cultural Festival that's coming up!"

"Awesome, Negi-kun!" Yuna cheers and hugs the young teacher, oblivious to their antagonists at the current time. "Can we help?"

"Rehearsing? That doesn't explain how or why we are in this cage right n...watch out, Negi-sensei!"

Negi and Yuna both look ahead to see Kotaro charging in hard, right arm coiled back ready to strike. The basketball girl screams and clutches Negi tighter, causing the charging boy to skid to a stop to avoid hitting Yuna. Clyde takes the opportunity and strikes the thorns from his rapier into the neck of the off-balanced Kotaro, causing him to drop to the ground, frozen in his same stance.

"Well, that was fun." Clyde beams as he performs a celebratory back flip, flipping a thumbs up to the small sensei and students as he plants his feet back on the ground. "One down, one to...eh?

The boy stops mid-brag as Kotaro suddenly begins moving and quickly hops up to his feet. The dark haired boy holds his neck and grins as he feels a small amount of blood flowing from the shallow punctures.

"Man, you guys are wimps! We have Negi Springfield resorting to hiding behind girls, and we have the idiot here taking cheap shots with a toxic blade, no less!"

"Wha...?" Clyde shakes his head in belief as Negi manages to pry Yuna off of him and stand in front of her. "That should have been good enough to knock out a person for the next day!"

"Hmm...I have to say, that if you're who I think you are that was a fairly disappointing judgment you just made." Fate sighs as he looks over the sword wielding boy. "Kotaro here is a dog hanyo. Do you really expect to keep him down with something meant for other humans? sigh Well, at least you can be considered a bonus."

_"Bonus?"_ Negi ponders as Kotaro cracks his knuckles a few feet from him, the look of malice never leaving his eyes. _"What could they possibly want with us? I know we've battled before, but you would think that would be enough to keep him away... First thing is first though. I have to make sure my students are going to be okay."_

Negi turns to face Yuna, who still has a happy go lucky smirk on her face.

"Yuna-san, you and Ako-san need to stay as far away as you can. It's dangerous here!"

"Dangerous?" The black haired girl tilts her head and looks at the pint sized professor in confusion. "This rehearsal is awesome! Come on, Negi-kun! Lemme help!"

"I'm sorry, Yuna-san." The boy's heart drops into his stomach as he sees her staring into his eyes, dangerously close to turning on the waterworks. "It's just that...uh...well, Clyde and I wanted to do something, since we're both from the western part of the world and all..."

"Negi-sensei." Ako's stern way of saying those two words snaps the boy's head sharply in her direction. "Why don't you tell us the truth? You too, Clyde-san."

"This is getting boring rather quickly..." A very small smile crosses Fate's face as he raises his hand towards Clyde. "If you're going to be dull like a statue, you can become one."

Fate chuckles as a ray fires from his palm towards the blonde boy, who has stood his ground and seems to be prepared to block the shot with his blade. Clyde never gets the chance though as what looks to be a small cyclone forms in front of him, dispersing both the ray and the wind upon impact. The boy glances over to see Negi smirking as he lowers his staff. Fate sighs before speaking again.

"Kotaro, why don't you keep Mr. Springfield entertained? I'm interested in seeing what his friend here can do."

"Lucky me." Clyde grins and points his rapier at Fate. "I'm sure we're going to have ourselves a grand old time." Clyde locks his eyes in on Fate and circles around him, speaking up as he notices something.

"Negi, maybe you should tell the two lovely ladies to back up a little bit."

"Yeah!" Kotaro agrees as he cracks his knuckles. "How am I supposed to beat you to a pulp if you keep hiding behind women? Don't be a coward like all the other western wizards, do ya?"

"Hey, girls! It should be safe over here!"

Yuna and Ako look over towards the metal of the cage and then back at each other, both having a look of confusion on their faces.

"Hey, Yuna? Is it just me or did that ermine just speak to us?"

"Hmm...you know, I think that it did. I really think it did Ako...wonder how Negi-kun taught it that trick."

* * *

Elsewhere, the rest of Negi's usual entourage are enjoying sundaes outside the cafeteria, and find themselves heavy one classmate this time around. A camera-toting redhead classmate to be exact. 

"...You're sure you aren't going to say anything, right Asakura-san?" Setsuna carefully asks, still not entirely thrilled to have the paparazzi involved in their little inner circle. The redheaded girl looks at the trio of girls; Setsuna with a look of worry, Konoka ever the optimist with a smile on her face, and Asuna having a mixed look of worry and frustration on her face. Asakura's face quickly mirrors the smile of the second girl as she flips a thumbs-up to the trio.

"Yeah, I'm going to keep this under wraps. Clyde-kun is being pretty persuasive in me being quiet about their little secret."

"Clyde-kun is a mage!?" Konoka nearly drops her spoon at the announcement while Setsuna nods and Asuna shakes her head.

"Oopsie!" Asakura chuckles and lightly taps her head. "Oh well. I guess that's another secret for you all to keep, eh?"

"Speaking of Negi and the moron," Asuna starts, putting extra emphasis on the last word. "..does anybody know what exactly they're doing? School's been out for a half hour or so."

"Oh, right! They're off hunting a rouge mage." Asakura happily retorts, shoveling another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth as Asuna's eyes nearly bulge out of her head.

"Rouge mage!? That idiot went off by himself!?"

"How do you figure, Asakura-san?" Setsuna tenses up at the reporter's words, already sensing something to be wrong.

"Well, that's the story I got out of the bug that I planted above the Headmaster's office yesterday." The girl grins as she takes an earpiece out of her left ear. "And it seems that he is a little concerned about our magic boys as well...and a little angry about Akashi and Izumi cutting classes."

"Maybe Yuna found a good deal on that shopping network and tried to get Ako to help with it?" Konoka offers up as she polishes off her icy treat. "It isn't like it would be the first time she's done something like that."

"True." Asuna ponders, finishing off her sundae as well. "But after the meeting with the Headmaster and Takahata-sensei, I don't think that Yuna would do that again. Maybe her VCR broke?"

As the quartet of students continue with their conjectures, a paper crane flies towards them, an envelope clutched in its talons. As if on instinct, Setsuna draws her sword and quickly downs the paper beast, catching the envelope in her free hand. The swordswoman opens it and pulls out the letter, the other girls huddling about to read it as well.

_Instead of spending your time thinking of what might have happened, why not find out what actually has happened? Head west out of town, the sooner the better. You can probably catch up with them if you hurry. Go on now._

The girls look over the note and then each other, looks of worry painted on every face.

"Looks like that feeling I had was with good reason. Ojou-sama, Asakura-san, go on back to your dorms. Asuna-san and I can handle this."

"Like hell!" Asakura hops up from her chair and puts an arm around Setsuna. "Do you really think that I'm going to let a something like this slip through my fingertips? You are dead wrong, Sakurazaki. I'm coming along whether you like it or not."

"Me too, Se-chan!" Konoka hops up and puts her arm over Setsuna's free shoulder. "I'm worried about Negi-kun and Clyde-kun as well. Let's go get them! Right, Asuna?"

"..Right!" Asuna holds her fist in the air and chuckles. "We can't let them have all the fun, y'know?"

"We're just like a fairy tale!" Konoka squeals as she jumps up and down, stopping to put a finger to her lips as her look changes from joy to confusion. "...Except that we're the heroines saving the princes in this case. Nice little twist on the books, right?"

"You know, life is never boring with you girls, now is it?"

Asuna looks at the grinning reporter and chuckles.

"No, Asakura-san. It doesn't seem that way. Well, what are we waiting for girls? Let's go!"

* * *

"...So, Negi-sensei and Clyde-san are wizards?" Ako looks at the talking ermine, a look of disbelief painted across her face. "I'd say I don't believe it, but seeing how I'm talking with an ermine, I don't think that it is all that unbelievable." 

"Not only is Negi-kun a genius, but he's a wizard too?" Yuna takes a couple of seconds to absorb Chamo's information before breaking out into a huge smile. "Sweet! That's awesome!"

The girl's joy is short lived though, as Negi is sent sliding a few feet behind her. The boy slowly picks himself up, holding his abdomen in agony as Kotaro cracks his neck and snickers.

"I didn't even hit you that hard!" Kotaro's smirk grows as he continues his taunting. "You're nothing, Negi Springfield! Nothing!"

Clyde, meanwhile, is in a bit of a hard spot as well, trying his hardest to avoid the pale rays that Fate is firing from his palm, patches of the metal floor of the cage being turned to stone with each miss. Unfortunately for the boy, he loses his footing while dodging and face plants hard into the metal floor of the cage. The gray haired boy shakes his head sadly and fires a shot at the downed mage. What Fate can't see from where he is standing, however, is Clyde fumbling through his pockets again, this time throwing an acorn at the ray, which promptly dissolves, leaving only a stone acorn to hit the ground. Clyde also takes a small vial out of his right pocket, downing it and quickly getting to his feet. Before Fate can react, he finds Clyde right in his face, headbutting him backwards and slightly grazing his left shoulder with the sword's thorns. Fate staggers backwards and goes to a knee, the toxin from the sword obviously having more of an effect on him than it did on Kotaro.

"Oh yeah! Eat that one!" Clyde mocks his foe, flexing his left arm and flipping a thumbs-up to the girls and ermine who are front row spectators. "So far, so good, ri.."

The older boy trails off as he notices Negi huddled over, a look of concern washing over his face. The younger boy grimaces as he plants his feet and holds his staff in front of him, preparing for Kotaro's next assault. The hanyo shakes his head and charges again, his right fist cocked back ready to strike. Just as he begins to extend his arm, Negi quickly sidesteps and lowers his staff, causing his adversary to stumble. The young mage quickly capitalizes, driving a knee into Kotaro's abdomen, effectively returning the favor as the boy doubles over. Kotaro manages to turn his head to the side to lessen the next blow, that being Negi bringing his staff up and into the side of Kotaro's head, leaving a small cut and bruise on his right cheek. Holding his staff in front of him once more, Negi carefully takes a few steps away from his downed foe, seemingly plotting out his next move.

"Heh...not too bad, Negi Springfield." Kotaro smiles as he picks himself up off the ground. "But you just made a big mistake. You let me get up. You aren't going to get another chance like that. I'll make sure of it!"

**"Sagita Magica Ser..."** Negi finds himself cut off as the swifter Kotaro closes the gap and catches him square in the jaw with a right hook. The boy staggers back, only to be taken down with a swift stomp to the side of his left knee. As soon as Negi hits the ground on all fours, he is chopped down even further by Kotaro, who kicks him in the face, busting open his lip.

"Negi-sensei/kun/Aniki!" Ako, Yuna, and Chamo watch on in horror as Negi struggles to get to his feet. Clyde mutters profanities to himself as he tries to sprint to assist the boy, only to be washed into the cage wall by a torrent of water, causing the sword to be knocked from his hand and transformed back into a withered rose. It is now Clyde's turn to scream in pain, partially to being slammed into the wall, partially due to the magic field that is reinforcing it shocking him.

"Oh right. I forgot about that." Fate waves a couple of pieces of paper in his hand and watches as Clyde picks himself up from the now wet floor of the cage. "I forgot to tell you that I know how to use talismans, didn't I? I'm glad that we have some water around now. I can control it like you just saw, and can also do things like this..."

The group watches on in horror as tentacles form from out of the water and wrap around the boy's arms and legs, rendering him helpless.

"Your enhanced speed won't do you much good if you can't move, now will it?" Fate coldly taunts the blonde, calmly taking steps towards his foe. "Clyde Metro, correct? Son of the Alchemical Adonis, Claude Metro?"

"Alchemical Adonis?" Yuna scratches her head and looks over to a just as confused Ako. "Man, I was just trying to get a grip on the Thousand Master. This feels like school all over again."

"Wow, you win a prize." Clyde sneers as Fate kneels down over his face. "And for the record, I think that my dad could have picked a better name. Kind of lame, actually. Wasn't really built..."

"Is there a reason you don't take a lot of things seriously?" Fate quizzes the boy, his hand glowing a pale blue as he places it on Clyde's forehead. The blonde boy's struggling increases with this, but eventually tapers off as his eyes slowly close. Fate closes his eyes as well and begins to mutter words to himself as he kneels over his foe. "Interesting...very interesting. Time travel...oh, what's this? Well, that confirms what we thought about the current state of the Thousand Master."

Negi's eyes instantly shoot over towards Fate and Clyde at the mere mention of his father, a look of confusion etched on his face. _"Why is he so interested in my father? What does he have to do with what's going on now?"  
_  
The young mage is snapped back to reality, quite painfully, as Kotaro cuts loose with a quick left/right hook combo. Negi wracks his brain as he staggers backwards, the new gash above his left eye not doing too much for his strategy planning. _"He's too quick for me! I just have to think of something! Clyde isn't doing much better and who knows what Fate will do to Yuna-san and Ako-san. He gets in close...can I pull it off? Master only had me working on it for a few days. I have to try though."_ The boy clears his throat after regaining his bearings and tries for another incantation.

**"Fulgaratio.."**

Negi grimaces in pain as he is tackled back to the ground by a pack of jet black dogs, conjured by Kotaro with a simple sweep of his hand. Soldiering through his agony, Negi manages to get out another pair of words as his foe's dogs tear at him.

**"...Albicans Profero.."**

The boy's spell is broken up as Kotaro stomps on his throat. Negi looks up at his foe, his face a mixture of fear and frustration.

"Give it a rest, Springfield! You aren't going to get a spell off against me! Eh?"

Kotaro stops gloating to notice Yuna and Ako running towards the fray, Chamo riding shotgun on the nurse's shoulder. The black haired boy shakes his head and points at Negi's cavalry.

"Take it easy on them, boys. I'm not going to hurt any girls here."

And with that, the dogs break off of Negi and charge in at the now stopped girls and ermine. The trio quickly find themselves on the ground, pinned under a pack of licking dogs.

"Ew, slobber!" Yuna groans in disgust as she tries to crawl out from under the paws of the affectionate canines. "I'm a cat person! Leave me alone, wouldya?"

"I...cut it out! I don't think it's going to work, Yu...leave my skirt alone!" Ako tries to free herself as well, all while trying her hardest to stay clothed.

"What the..? Chamo!"

Ako squirms as she feels something crawling up her side and shoots an angry glare at the ermine as his head pops out of the top of her shirt.

"Heh...sorry ane-san." The ermine chuckles nervously as one of the dogs growls at him. "I'm not perverted. I just don't want to become a dog dinner."

Kotaro laughs, satisfied about warding off any backup before turning to Negi, the smirk on his face being erased as Negi hooks the boy's leg with his left arm and raises a gold glowing right palm aimed right at his chest. The boy tries to pull away, but Negi manages to keep his leg pinned tight before uttering a final word.

**"Liberatio!"**

Kotaro goes from smug to sore in a matter of seconds as a bolt of lightning emanates from Negi's hand, sending the hanyo flying into the air. The boy's screams of pain only intensify as he hits the top of the cage back first, the force of which causing some blood to fly from his mouth.

"_A delayed spell? Just my luck…eh?"_

Kotaro looks down towards his foe and sees that he has his staff pointed right at him. Knowing that he'll be unable to dodge, he does his best to brace himself as he falls back down to the ground.

"**Sagita Magica Serius Fulguralis!**

The boy's eyes open wide in shock as he stares at the magic arrows that are quickly closing in on him. Time seems to move in slow motion for the boy as the projectiles grow ever closer. All Kotaro can do is clench his fists together and shut his eyes, hoping for a miracle miss that the boy knew would not be coming.

"_What the hell!? How can he still have something like that left after the beating I put him through!? Just how strong is this guy? Damnit!!"_

Kotaro's screams are muffed out by the explosion of arrows that assault his body. Negi breathes in deeply, not taking his eyes off of the boy who is now lying prone on the ground. The young mage takes his glasses off and looks on in confusion, swearing that for a split second he saw his foe become two bodies and then one again. He takes a few steps towards Kotaro, who is in just as bad of shape as the remaining tatters of his clothing are. ..even get a chance to play either of my trump cards…" Kotaro coughs again, a gob of bright red blood escaping from his mouth as he does so. "Very clever, Negi Springfield. Don't…expect any mercy…next..ti"

Kotaro doesn't get a chance to finish his threat as he slips into unconsciousness, much to the relief of Negi and his cheering section, who are now freed of the conjured canines.

"That was so cool, Negi-kun!" Yuna squeals in delight, hugging the sore sensei and causing him to yelp in pain. "Sorry! Are you okay?"

"Thank you very much, Yuna-san. Yes, I am fine, but what about Clyde?"

The group all turn and look to see an unconscious Clyde still bound to the floor in his water shackles, the glowing hand of Fate still resting on his forehead. As Negi carefully takes a step towards the two, Fate's head quickly snaps up and shoots Negi a glare, making him jump back a little in surprise. Fate shakes his head and stands back up, never taking his eyes off of the young mage.

"Hmm…I told Kotaro not to take you lightly." Fate sighs as he approaches the bruised combatants. "Delayed spell, it seems, correct? The poor boy didn't even get a chance to multiply or transform. What a pity. And to think that we kept him from the Kyoto plan as an insurance policy if it failed…."

Fate stops his advance and talking as Negi readies his staff. The boy wipes the blood and sweat from his brow as he prepares to defend himself once again. After sizing up the situation, Negi drops his staff a couple of seconds later, much to the surprise of everybody watching.

"Giving up already, Negi Springfield?" The gray haired boy cracks his neck and has a slight smirk painted on his face before speaking up again. "You disappoint me."

"I'm not giving up." Negi coldly replies, returning the boy's stare. "I've beaten you before and I'll do it again. I just want some answers first."

"Hmmm…if memory serves me correctly, you didn't defeat me when we last met." Fate reminds Negi, his hands glowing as he prepares his chi for battle. "It was more or less that vampire that felled me last time. But I suppose I could humor you, especially since this procedure may kill you anyways. There are two reasons for wanting this. The first reason is that we wanted control of your father's powers."

"My…father?" Negi looks at Fate curiously and speaks up again. "How are you going to do that? And why?"

"Seeing as how we couldn't capture Konoka Konoe, we had to come up with a secondary plan….or, to be frank, it fell into our laps as a result of our battle. Why should we try to use somebody that has an entire magical association at her beck and call when we could use the powers of somebody that is believed to be dead? Someone that is near death anyways and would be easy to manipulate?"

"Negi-sensei?" Ako looks over at her teacher with a worried look on her face. The boy's face is blanched and he shows hardly any emotion. Yuna shakes the boy to try to snap him out of his trance, but to little success, as only a trio of words escape the young mage's mouth.

"Father….you're alive..."

"Through all of our research, we were able to determine that the Thousand Master was alive, although probably not in the best of health. Thanks to the memory of your friend there, it was confirmed. Your father seems to be stuck between life and death right now…and that's where you come in, Negi Springfield."

Fate boots Negi in the stomach, snapping him out of his trance and knocking the two girls and ermine to the ground. Yuna slowly gets up, holding her right elbow in pain, whereas Ako is trying her hardest to keep an iron stomach as she looks at the blood pouring out of her scraped knee. Negi is able to get to a knee using his staff, the blows he sustained against Kotaro obviously showing their effect. Fate notices the death glare that he is receiving from the young mage, but continues on.

"You see, if we use the magic from your body, there is a possibility that we can access that place. The closer to death that you are, the easier it will be to extract from you. If you manage to survive the shock, you may get to see your father again. Think of that as encouragement to pull through. As for my second reason...honestly, I wanted to see if you had improved any since the last time we fought. You have potential and I wanted the challenge that I felt you could provide. Come now, get to your feet. Or do I have to give you some more motivation?"

Fate glances over towards the two girls and raises one of his glowing hands towards them. The pair shrieks in horror as a ray fires from the boy's hand. The screams of horror end with a thud, not from a pair of petrified females, but from a second stone acorn. Everybody glances behind Fate to see a now standing Clyde, sword back in hand and with an irritated look etched on his face.

"Hey, thanks for the power nap." Clyde mockingly shoots Fate a victory sign as he swings his sword. "I hope you had a fun trip running though my memories. I know that there isn't anything too interesting about little old me, so I hope you weren't too bored."

"Quite the opposite, actually. I confirmed what my thought was on the Thousand Master. And as for your life, it isn't as boring as you'd like to make it out. I learned some interesting things. For example, you can't cast magic without a plant to manipulate or a potion to drink. That's got to be rather inconvenient for you, eh? And I also know that you don't have anything else in your pockets now, so that means no more secret weapons."

Clyde shakes his head in frustration as he realizes that Fate is right on the mark with his last statement. The boy curses to himself as he circles his foe, wishing he would have loaded up his pockets a little better before the duo set out. _"Ah well. It can't be helped. Just gonna have to wing it now. Too bad my speed potion wore off. It probably would have came in handy."_ Clyde charges at Fate, being promptly knocked to the floor of the cage as a fist forms out of the water puddle remaining from the boy's talisman. The rest of the group winces and shout in concern as the dazed blonde staggers to his feet.

"That should hopefully put you in your place. Now then, are you ready to fight yet, Negi Springfield?"

The young mage slowly nods his head and joins Clyde in flanking the grey child, staff held outward in a defensive position. Negi charges in at his foe, hopping on his staff and flying square at him while screaming a threat of his own to his foe.

"I will not allow you to hurt my students anymore! Defend yourself!"

And with that, Negi hops onto his staff and flies towards the gray haired child. Fate watches as the young mage gets closer and closer, a general lack of concern on his face. As best as Fate can tell, Negi is trying to cast a spell as he has his arm cocked behind him and is muttering an incantation.

"_Come on now, Negi. Do you really expect me to be hit with something so simple? Here I was hoping that you had learned something useful…"_

Fate sighs as he makes a sweeping motion with his right arm, causing the still dazed Clyde to be decked with another fist from the water pool. The blonde shouts out in pain as he is sent flying from the shot, his eyes growing ever wider as he notices that he has been sent flying towards Negi. As he hasn't quite mastered flying quite yet, all the young mage can do is shift his weight and fly on his side in an attempt to keep from accidently impaling Clyde. As expected, the duo crashes into each other and land on the ground in a heap, Negi's staff flying and landing a few feet from the carnage.

"Negi-sensei! Clyde-san!" Ako and Yuna look on in horror as Chamo tries his hardest to brainstorm up a way out of their current mess. Sweatdrops roll off the ermine's brow as the gears continue to grind, being replaced by a beaming expression as he gets his idea.

"_Aniki is going to kill me, but this is the only way we're going to get out of this. Besides, he should learn to enjoy having multiple partners…."_

Clyde, meanwhile is in the process of picking himself off of a stunned Negi when Fate dashes in and attempts to throw an elbow into the blonde boy's face. Clyde sidesteps the attempt, grabbing Fate's arm and judo throwing him before he can follow up. Fate quickly springs to his feet, blocking and catching a Metro roundhouse before it can hit its mark. The boy shakes his head and hooks Clyde's ankle under his arm and brings his free elbow down hard onto the boy's knee, causing all the spectators to cringe from the scream of agony that follows. After throwing the boy's leg back to the ground hard, Fate follows up with a quick uppercut, knocking Clyde hard to the ground. All the blonde can to is glare up at Fate in between whimpers while clutching his knee.

"You aren't going to best me, Clyde Metro." Fate taunts as he looks over the stunned boy and the slow to rise Negi. "I know every punch, kick, throw, and hold that you can perform. If you give up, maybe we'll let you help us with….oof!"

Fate finds himself lying on the ground in a daze as a basketball descends from the sky and nails him squarely in the head. The trio of battered boys turn their heads to see Yuna falling from the air, all with a smirk across her face. Behind her is a stern looking Ako, wielding a very large syringe. To cap off the backup, a very smug Chamo is sitting on Ako's shoulder, shooting Fate a single fingered salute.

"You're going down now, kid!" Chamo laughs loudly, startling the nurse whom he is perched on. "Aniki is going to take you out, and we're going to make sure of it! Hit him again, ane-san!

"_Ane-san?"_ Ako shakes her head at the ermine's remark. _"A talking ermine that is trying to suck up to Yuna and me…yeah, I'm gonna wake up any minute now…I hope."_

"Hit me again?" Fate glances at Yuna and tilts his head in confusion before noticing that the girl's basketball is glowing as well as the tennis shoes that she is sporting. "Ah, a pactio item that comes in two parts. Impressive. But I have no intention of having to deal with you two. Besides, two girls that are as comely as yourselves would make better decorations, wouldn't you say?"

Negi tries to get to his feet in an attempt to stop the boy, but doesn't get far as Fate stomps on his back and keeps him pinned to the ground. Clyde meanwhile tries to hobble to the rescue, but is slowed down enough by the leg injury to prevent him from being a factor. Shrieking, Ako acts on impulse and swings her large syringe at the ray as it closes in on her, causing the blast to harmlessly disperse. As Fate looks on at yet another botched petrification attempt, Yuna takes to the air and chucks another orange cannonball towards the boy. Acting on instinct himself, Fate cartwheels out of the way, the basketball narrowly missing Negi's head and leaving a small crater in the metal floor of the cage a foot shy of the young wizard.

"Oops! Sorry, Negi-kun!" Yuna nervously chuckles as the now freed Negi picks up his staff and points it at the now off balance Fate. Before the boy has a chance to cast, Fate raises his hand up, causing a tentacle to emerge from the water and trip the boy up, making him face plant hard into the floor. Negi hopelessly looks up and gazes at his surroundings: Fate, clearly in the driver's seat of this fight. Clyde, forest sword in hand, but with a very sore leg. Yuna and Ako, both wanting to help, but both with little to no knowledge of combat.

"_This is very bad…Clyde is wounded and I don't want to get the girls involved in this any more than they already are. We need a plan.."_

As Negi tries to size up his current situation, he is cut off as a familiar voice rings inside of the mage's head.

_"Negi! Are you okay!?"_

_"Asuna? Oh am I glad to hear from you. Where are you at?"_

_"Look up!"_

Confused, the young wizard does as he is instructed and smiles as he does so. Several faces are lined around the top of the cage; Asuna, Konoka, Setsuna, Asakura, Ku Fei, Kaede, and Mana, who seems to be standing back a ways further and surveying the action through the scope on her rifle. Fate notices the assortment of females above him as well, and the look on his face is quite the opposite of the look of joy etched on the face of Negi.

"Damnit! What the hell happened!? How did anybody else find out about our plan?!" The cool and calm demander Fate usually displays has now been replaced with anger and frustration. "What the hell happened to Chigusa and Tsukuyomi!?"

_"Mana, Ku, and Kaede already had taken them out before we could find you."_ Asuna blinks a couple of times as she peers into the cage to try to better make out what is happening. _"That kid is certainly shouting loud enough for being as small as he is now."_

Negi nods in agreement as his fellow cage patrons look on in confusion. _We're trying to find a way out of here, but Fate is just too strong. Any ideas fo..._

Negi's telepathy with Asuna is abruptly cut off as Fate dashes towards him and clutches him by the throat, lifting him up in the air.

"How utterly worthless! All three of them went down without a fight! Thanks to your little enterage, my entire plan has been laid to waste! Unluckilly for you, Negi, this cage is now going to become a crypt! Hmm?"

Fate turns his gaze from a struggling Negi to notice a very battered Kotaro slowly picking himself off of the ground. Not only is he doing that, but at the same time seems to be changing his outer appearance. Thick white fur and bulging muscles replace the boy's original features as his nails slowly transform into sharp claws. The boy's black hair grows out and turns a whitish hue as well to complete the metamorphosis. The boy slowly looks up and shoots an angry glare, not at Negi, but rather to the enraged boy that is currently holding him up.

"Worthless, huh?" Kotaro slowly ambles towards the source of the insult, still showing the effects of Negi's last attack on him. "Heh. You're one to talk. YOU are the one that made the plan, after all."

Fate glances at the lycanthrope and shakes his head sadly before responding. "If you would have come out and did that to start with, maybe we wouldn't be in the situation that we are in now. Kotaro, the only thing that you are is a liability. Something that I'm going to remedy right now."

And with that, the pale boy tosses Negi into a slowly approaching Clyde, leaving both sprawled on the floor as the girls and ermine run to their aid. Kotaro, meanwhile, cracks his knuckles and begins to circle his prey, turning his head towards the fallen wizards before acting against his foe.

"Consider this a reward for beating me, Negi. I've got a problem when people talk badly about me for no reason. Besides, there aren't going to be any girls getting hurt on my watch!"

Negi and Clyde nervously sweatdrop and shoot each other strange looks; possibly a natural reaction to the musings of a noble werewolf.

"Well, I guess chivalry isn't dead." Clyde chuckles, momentarily forgetting about his pain, at least until Ako pokes at his knee, making the boy tear up. "What did you do that for!?"

"Hmm…it's just as I thought. Your knee is dislocated."

"Bah!" Clyde shakes off the nurse's opinion and gets to his feet, wincing in agony and nearly falling back to the ground. "Ah…see? It's fine."

"You're hurt, Clyde-kun." Yuna agrees with her friend, a look of concern on her face. "Don't lie to us."

"Maybe a little….fine. Yeah, I'm hurt. We got bigger things to worry about though, like how to get out of this jam. Any ideas, Negi?...Hey! Are you paying attention?"

Negi, keenly watching the spectacle of Kotaro waging war against Fate, snaps back to reality and looks over at his wounded comrade, sighing sadly as his healing magic isn't to the point where he can fix the boy's knee.

"I don't know yet, but we need to figure something out while those two are fighting…"

* * *

**Translations:** **Silva Vesica** Forest Blade, **Profero** Delay, **Liberatio** Release 

**Author's Notes: **Ah, there we go! First of all, sorry for the (way too long) break between updates. Several factors came into play on this: A large amount of rust as it comes to writing battle scenes for starters. Four-plus years, give or take. So sorry about the action being a little lackluster. We're working on it. A change in computers as well was guilty for the delay...but you all don't want to hear excuses, eh? I think I'm settled into a good system for writing and what have you now, so I can promise that barring a freak hospitalization or a soda spill to the laptop, that there won't be any more month-plus waits for chapters...matter of fact, the next one will be up in the next few days or so, as I got so carried away with writing this chapter that I decided to break it up into two parts. So if you are still reading, there's something to look forward to. As always, reviews are always apprciated, as are PMs and e-mails. Thanks for any feedback and for the patience. See you all with Chapter 7!

**-_Midnight_**


	7. Fieldwork of a Wizard Part 3: Loose Ends

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things that I own are my ideas and my OC, Clyde Metro, so please don't sue. Considering I just spent most of my money on a new laptop, so it isn't exactly like I would have anything to give monetary-wise anyways.

**Author's Notes:** Wow, it's been awhile hasn't it? A lot longer than I was hoping for. It's always nice when life throws you curveballs, isn't it? For all those faithful readers (All five of you, hopefully more ), sorry about the delay. Hopefully you will all find it worth the wait. Big props for all the reviews, in particular to Eternal Longing for the constructive criticism and X Serac for starting in on each and every chapter. Chapter three finally has a review and isn't unloved. :) Also, thanks go to Dark Dragon Dave, as he has actually volunteered to be my proof reader. What a guy. And so, without further adu, on with the show!

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 7**

"So does anybody have an idea yet?" Asuna's question is met with blank looks from the rest of the girls, each of them trying to come up with a plan to save the day. The young girl sighs in frustration as she takes a few steps away from the group to lean on a tree, glancing over at their unconscious antagonists. The Kansai rouges did have a good idea of how to make good on their escape. They found themselves a few miles out of Mahora, smack dab in the middle of the wilderness. The two ladies would have probably gotten away too if the Headmaster hadn't sent Kaede, Ku Fei, and Mana out to search a couple of hours after the two boys had embarked on their quest. Frustrated, Asuna pushes herself from the tree and walks to a nearby stream, splashing the refreshing water in her face, hoping to clear her head long enough to figure out a way to help Negi and the others.

"Did that help any?"

Asuna quickly shoots her glance to the source of the voice, Setsuna, and shakes her head sadly.

"I don't know how we could help them from out here. The only way I know we can get in would be for Negi to summon us, and you know how he is about things like that. He's so stupid! I can't believe that idiot!"

"Negi-sensei isn't stupid; he's just…well, stubborn." Setsuna nods, knowing full well that Asuna was trying to mask her full concern for the small sensei. "The best that I can tell about the cage is that it is using a mixture of magic and chi to function. The magic probably came from the construction, but the chi…"

"…The gray haired boy is supplying." Both girls turn to see Mana looking right back at them. "Trying to dispel the cage as it is now would be very dangerous. We're just going to have to hope that Negi-sensei and Clyde-san can defeat their foe…and it seems that they have some help too."

"What do you mean?" Setsuna looks at the bounty hunter with a puzzled look on her face. "Akashi and Izumi tried to help. We already know that."

"From what I could see through my scope, it seems that the wolf hanyo has turned on the group ringleader. If we're going to figure out a way to help Negi-sensei, now is the time."

The trio of girls snap out of their current mood as they hear water splashing from the stream. They all look to the right to see a gloomy looking Asakura and Konoka skipping rocks as Kaede and Ku try to figure out a plan of their own.

"Man, this sucks. The action was over by the time we showed up, and with what's going on now, we can't do anything at all." The paparazzo skips another stone and watches as the ripples from the bounces merge together. "This is so disappointing."

"I know what you mean, Asakura-san. I want to help Negi-kun too." Konoka attempts to skip a stone, sighing as it immediately sinks into the crystal clear water of the stream. "I just wish there was something we could do."

As if on cue, Mana's expression brightens up. She quietly talks to Setsuna and Asuna, both girls lightening up as well after the girl finishes. Asuna nods and puts her pactio card to her forehead again. The sharpshooter pats her on the shoulder and makes her way over to the stone skippers.

"Maybe there is something you two can do." The sound of somebody muttering snaps the girl's attention over to Ku Fei and Kaede, who are watching over their tied up captives in Chigusa and Tsukuyomi. The duo looks down after exchanging glances with Mana to notice that the two bound females are starting to slowly come to. Without missing a beat, the captors both bring a hard chop down on the necks of their quarry, effectively putting them both back on dream street. "Nice moves…hey, Ku, Kaede, come over here too. I think we have a plan to help them. What do you think if…"

* * *

_"Well, yes. I suppose it could work, Asuna. But how are we going to escape afterwards?"_

_"Damnit, Negi! Worry about it when you're not dead! We got it covered, okay?"_

_"Alright, we'll give it a shot. Thank you. All of you."_

Negi nods and turns to his comrades, the two girls trying to act as crutches for the wounded blonde, Chamo opting to switch perching spots, this time riding shotgun on Yuna's free shoulder. The child sensei grimaces, knowing full well that with Clyde in his current state the plan would put a lot of risk onto the girls. The boy takes a deep breath and motions the quartet in close, explaining the idea.

"I'm not done yet, Fate! Not by a long shot!"

The group turns and looks towards the ongoing battle, noticing a still irritated Fate walking towards Kotaro, who is now holding his right shoulder, blood seeping out from underneath his hand.

"Give it up, Kotaro." Fate glares at the boy, clearly not amused by his attempts to subdue him. "You are just as pathetic as you were when you were fighting Negi. What are you hoping to accomplish against me with that wounded body?"

"Heh…wounded or not, I can still take you out. You shouldn't underestimate your foe, you little punk!"

And with that, Kotaro takes off charging towards Fate, the speed of which Negi and Clyde have a hard time following with their eyes. Just before making contact with Fate, a second Kotaro seemingly leaps from the first and throws a punch at the boy. Fate just shakes his head and grabs the extended arm, swinging him about into the first Kotaro before hammer throwing him into the metal and magic of the cage. Fate turns back towards the original, this time to see that he has split into three in the short period of time. The trio quickly flanks the young boy, each with a confident smile painted on his face. One makes his way behind Fate and goes to spear him in the back, causing the boy to leap at the last second and drive a foot hard into his spine. Not finished, Fate uses the force of the stomp to push off towards the Kotaro flanking him on the right, catching him square in the face with a vicious kick. Before he can follow up on his attack though, Fate finds himself in a full nelson, courtesy of the remaining Kotaro.

"Gotcha now!" Kotaro smirks as he applies pressure to the hold, causing the pale boy to thrash about even harder. "You know I could break your neck right now if I wanted to, right?"

This comment only adds to Fate struggling even harder to escape, a couple of blank slips of paper falling out of his pocket as he does so. Kotaro notices the dropped papers and laughs even harder at the sight.

"Oh, that's great. I think you forgot to fill out your will on those sheets though. They look pretty blank to me." The boy's laughing abruptly stops however as his foe suddenly stops struggling for his escape. "Giving up already, are we?"

Kotaro's slight confusion over Fate seemingly giving up is intensified as a small chuckle escapes from the throat of the pale youngster. Frustrated, Kotaro torques on the hold even harder, surprisingly enough not getting even a whimper out of the young boy as the pressure increases.

"Such a shame, Kotaro. You see, when you go off and underestimate a foe…"

The confused Kotaro copy instantly releases its hold and begins to shake in shock. Fate turns around and looks at his handiwork; that being an icicle jutting out of his opponent's throat from one of the paper sheets. The boy snaps his fingers and an icicle springs from the second paper that fell, this time running through the boy's left hamstring.

"…it can be quite painful. You should be thankful that you are in split form right now or else you would be dead."

All of the copies of the lycanthrope grimace in pain before disappearing, leaving only the one that was tossed into the cage. He slowly gets to his feet and promptly falls to a knee, coughing up a bright red glob of blood as he struggles to stand again. Soon enough, Kotaro finds himself slammed into the cage once again as Fate uses his chi to do so.

"Considering that you just lost a fifth of your strength in one single strike, you should be happy that you are in as good of shape that you are now." Fate walks towards his foe, who by now, is struggling just to stay conscious. Kotaro's look of anger is replaced by one of shock as he looks down at his hands to see just that. No white fur, no claws, just a pair of battered human widow makers.

"_Great…just great. Now what the hell am I going to do? I can't even get to my feet!"_

Fate continues his march towards the fallen boy, still not letting up on his callous taunting.

"All you needed to do was fall in line. That's all that the plan required you to do. But you couldn't even do that, could you? Pride is a good thing to have, Kotaro, but they call it a deadly sin for a reason. A reason that you are about to discover firsthand."

Fate snaps his fingers and lifts his right arm, causing the pair of icicles that impaled one of Kotaro's split forms to lift from the floor and hover above the pale child. The hanyo looks on; terror etched on his face as the blood from their first use glistens on the tips. He closes his eyes shut and screams in pain, not from being impaled, but rather from somebody tackling him out of the way. Grimacing, the boy slowly opens his eyes to see a smiling Negi looking back at him.

"Negi…why are you helping me?" The boy looks at the young wizard confused, remembering that only several minutes earlier, the two were locked battle with each other.

"Consider us even for what you've done against Fate." Negi chuckles and pats the boy on the shoulder. "We'll take it from here, Kotaro-san."

"We?" Kotaro's look of confusion remains on his face as he slowly tilts his head towards the rest of Negi's party.

"A cripple, a hyperactive pumpkin pounder, a nervous needle toting nurse, and a weasel is your idea of taking it from here? How the hell are you going to 'take it from here' with that ensemble?"

"You just have to have faith." Negi beams at the battered boy, the confidence radiating off of him putting Kotaro somewhat at ease. "A little planning can do a long way."

"Negi is absolutely correct, Kotaro." Fate nods as he walks towards the two battered boys. "For example, my plan is to destroy every single one of you. A simple plan, yet very effective. I suppose that I should thank you though for the entertainm…"

The boy stops mid-speech as he quickly pivots around and catches a stone acorn that Clyde tosses towards him. Fate shakes his head sadly at the boy before clenching the stone in his fist and turning it to powder. Clyde smirks at his foe, taking a couple of steps towards Fate with Yuna acting as a crutch.

"Champ, I can in all honesty say one thing about you; you are a fruit assortment short of a fruit basket. Way to leap off the deep end." Clyde buckles over with laughter, stopping and wincing in pain when he accidently puts pressure onto his bad leg. "How sad for you. It's a shame, really that you have screws loose, what with all of your magical talent and all…"

"You die first." The callousness in Fate's voice causes the blonde mage to actually cringe. "Do you have any last words?"

Clyde blinks a couple of times and scratches his head as he wracks his brain. "Last words, you say? Well, I don't want to really say any last words. It's too nice of a day to have to do something like that. The birds are chirping, and boy is the sun shining!"

Upon uttering those last words, everybody save for Fate and Kotaro shuts their eyes, the latter of which having Negi put a hand over them. Before the confused Fate has time to react, a loud click is quickly followed up by a blinding flash that cascades through the cage. A split second later, Fate is grimacing in pain and holding his hands to his eyes, wandering forward blindly into a Clyde haymaker. The boy is pained by the shot, but holds his ground, until taking a Yuna slam dunk into the chest. Wincing as he feels his ribs crack, Fate falls towards the ground, saved from collapse as Negi utters out another incantation.

"_**Turbo ventus, redimio meus hostilis aer!"**_

Slowly regaining his vision, Fate is able to make out gusts of wind circling around him. He tries to get to his feet, but finds it hard to do so as he is levitating a couple of feet off the ground. Ako and Clyde look at each other and nod as Yuna uses her shoes to leap up with Clyde and drop him into the cyclone, sword brandished and aimed square at the entrapped youth. Due to the whirling winds, the boy misses his intended target of the chest area and instead pierces Fate in the left leg. Clyde mutters profanities under his breath, lost upon the whipping winds as he tries to position himself to avoid landing on his bad leg when the winds subside. Fate meanwhile has his screams lost in the wind as well as he notices the blood trickling from the wound.

"Damn…at least we were smart enough to double up though…time to start hoping that she doesn't impale me with that damn thing…"

Clyde flips the nurse a thumbs up as he continues to float in the whirlwind. A look of resolve washes across the teen's face as she charges at the tornado, looking as silly as one can when jousting with a large needle. It's no laughing matter for Fate though, who manages to pull his attention away from his leg wound long enough to notice Ako growing ever closer with her artifact. The boy rummages through his pockets, seemingly trying to deploy a talisman in the middle of Negi's spell, but is unable to do so, taking the needle directly into his chest, a couple of inches above his right pectoral.

"Nice shot!" Clyde cheers on the girl, grabbing her arm and pulling her in towards him as the whirlwind slowly subsides. The blonde boy takes the shot to the back in stride, clutching Ako in his chest to protect her. Fate, meanwhile, looks at his wounds, the expression of pain clearly etched across his face. Negi carefully walks towards his foe, staff brandished in front of him. Fate glares angrily at the boy and hobbles a couple of steps towards him before falling flat on his face unconscious. Negi gasps in fear as he notes the blood seeping out of the boy's leg where Clyde had pierced him.

"D..D..Did we just kill him..?"

Clyde looks past the girl who is still clutched onto him over at the boy. After a few seconds, he shakes his head.

"Nah. The combined potency of my blade and what was in that syringe should be more than enough to knock him out for several hours…hopefully anyways. I really don't want to have to do anymore fighting today. Such a chore…eh?"

Clyde blinks a couple of times as he notices the nurse still holding onto him for dear life. The boy taps her on the shoulder a couple of times to no avail. A second attempt by clearing his throat is met with similar failure. Finally, the boy decides it calls for drastic measures and pulls at her hair, making Ako yelp in pain and thrash about slightly as she opens her eyes.

"Hey! What was that for!? Huh?"

Ako's anger is short lived as she notices something strange about the boy beneath her; namely him staring at her with his eyes sparkling. The nurse in turn blushes, not quite sure what to make of the situation. Negi takes his eyes off of the fallen Fate long enough to look over and sweatdrop, whereas Yuna and Chamo represent the complete opposite of the spectrum, whistling and cheering on the duo on the ground.

"Aw, isn't that sweet?" Chamo chuckles as he watches on from his vantage point. "It's amazing how in the heat of battle, one can find romance."

"It about brings tears to your eyes." Yuna grins, wiping an aforementioned tear from her eye. "I hope Ako will be happy. Clyde-kun seems like a nice guy."

The duo is brought out of their talks of love and romance as Clyde begins speaking.

"Hey, Ako-chan?" I have something very important to ask you."

The girl feels her heart rate increase at the blonde's last sentence, not really for sure why. Nervously, Ako forages onward, not sure what to say or even do in the moment.

"Wh…What is it, Clyde-san?"

The girl's brown eyes lock into a gaze with the boy's blue ones. If her head wasn't hurting from her hair being pulled, the girl would likely faint from the suspense. Then, in one moment, it is all over. The images of a blossoming love and sharing milkshakes at a diner vanish as quickly as they appeared.

"Could you please get off my knee?" The tears in Clyde's eyes continue to stream down his face as the teenage girl glances down. Sure enough, her leg is digging square into the boy's dislocated knee. "I don't mean to be rude or anything, but it's really starting to hurt."

Ako quickly scurries to her feet and turns away embarrassed from the blonde. A loud crashing sound echoes throughout the magic enforced cage as Yuna and Chamo both facefault at the spectacle. Negi and Kotaro both glance over at the toppled duo and then at each other in confusion.

"I wonder…am I going to be that way when I get older?" Negi blinks a couple of times at Kotaro, who after pondering the young mage's question for a few seconds responds by punching him on the top of the head.

"You'd better not get that way, Negi! I'm starting to actually respect you, don't go throwing it away with that sappy junk!" Kotaro pauses from his little spiel long enough to get a look of concern on his face. "So what exactly is going to happen to me anyways? I could always make a break for it…but I figure I owe you a debt for saving me. Don't get me wrong though. As soon as your body heals, I'll be back for that rematch!"

"What a moron...Negi saves your butt and you still want a piece of him?" Clyde laughs as he pulls himself up to a sitting position. "Being a blowhard isn't really a smart thing to be, kid."

"What the hell would you know!?" The black haired boy takes a couple of pained steps towards Clyde before falling to a knee in pain. "I don't owe you a debt of gratitude, so unlike Negi, you are very much in danger right no..."

Kotaro is cut off as Negi saps him in the back of the head with his staff. The look of frustration from dealing with Kotaro vanishes from Clyde's face as he begins laughing even louder.

"That was sweet, Negi! Way to show that little punk who's in cha…"

Clyde finds himself cut off the same way Kotaro did as Negi brings his staff down hard on the boy's neck. The boy looks at his handiwork and shakes his head sadly.

"Sorry, Clyde, sorry Kotaro-san. You two really need to rest right now though." The boy turns away from the sleeping mage and walks towards his other students, the smile on his face somehow shining through the pain that the bruises and blood on the boy would indicate.

"Are you okay, Negi-sensei?" Ako looks over the battered boy, trying her hardest not to faint from the blood that is slowly oozing from the cuts on the boy's face.

"I've been better, to be earnest. How about you two?"

"Never better, Negi-kun!" Yuna flips the battered boy a thumbs up, a wince of pain sneaking through her grin as Negi stares at the bruise on her elbow. The boy lets out a depressed sigh as he slowly turns to look at Ako, now more concerned for the small sensei than squeamish over the blood on his face. Negi delves deeper into depression as he looks at Ako's knees, the scrapes on them now in the process of scabbing over.

"I'm so sorry! Akashi-san, Izumi-san, I didn't mean for you to get hurt." The boy drops to his knees as tears well up in his eyes. Ako and Yuna look at each other before turning their looks to their now sobbing teacher. "I'm supposed to protect you all, and look at what I drug you into! If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have gotten hurt…"

Negi stops in the middle of his sobs as he feels two hands land on each of his shoulders. The young boy looks up to see Yuna and Ako smiling at him, Chamo standing between the duo with a similar smile.

"Don't worry, Negi-sensei." Ako beams at the young boy, causing him to feel slightly better. "Remember, Yuna and myself were the ones that followed you. We did it all on our own."

"Yeah! Cheer up, Negi-kun! Besides, without us, you and Clyde-kun would have been in big trouble, right? It all worked out for the best!"

"You have to hand it to them, Negi." The aforementioned boy quickly snaps his head over to his left as he feels an arm drape over his shoulder, the owner of which being Clyde. "Without these two, we would've been screwed. Up a creek without a paddle, locked in a cage without a key…well, based on our current situation, that probably isn't the best metaphor to use, but you get the idea. Oh yeah, thanks a lot for trying to sap me too. Don't see what I did, but whatever…"

"Hey, Negi-sensei?" The small teacher turns away from his beaming associate to glance over at Ako. "Chamo mentioned something about a pact when he told us how to use these cards. Um, how exactly does it work?"

"Well…um…" Negi stammers, not really sure if he wants to tell the duo of girls a secret that they'll soon forget.

"Hey, Negi, you aren't planning on erasing their memories, are you?" The boy's jaw drops from the shock of Clyde's guess being right on the mark. "You haven't gotten that spell down yet, right? I gotta tell you though, that is a sexual harassment case in the works if you can't get it down pat. And to tell you the truth, I don't really have any desire to brew a memory erasing potion right now, so it looks like you're stuck with two more people in on the loop. It won't be that bad. Hell, Asakura is keeping quiet, and neither of these girls seems to be as blunt as her."

"But this is exactly the kind of thing that is going to get us transf…" Negi sighs in defeat, knowing that he is fighting a losing argument with the blonde. "…sigh I suppose that two more people knowing on top of everything isn't going to hurt…but no more adventures. I'm not putting my students in danger!"

Clyde laughs at the young boy's last statement, slapping him on the back as he does so. "That's the spirit, Negi! Besides, if you do a good job of protecting everybody, there won't be any danger, now will there?"

"Negi-kun…" The boys spin about to the now pouting Yuna. "Since you aren't going to erase our memories, tell us about the pactio thing…pretty please?"

"Well, alright." Negi takes a few seconds to collect himself, trying to think of a way to explain pactios and just how exactly he came to form one with almost every single girl in the class in one fell swoop. "You see…"

* * *

Just a few short feet away from the cage and quite a few feet taller, the Springfield rescue unit is celebrating the victory of their sensei. Amid all of the cheering and high fives, Asuna can't take her eyes off of Mana, no matter how hard she tries. Acting on instinct, the sharpshooter quickly turns her gaze and locks hers with that of the redhead looking at her. 

"Hmm? Something wrong, Kagurazaka-san?"

Asuna lets out a small gasp just at the calm way the girl utters her question before responding. "Yeah…I know that you work at the temple on campus, but that doesn't really explain how you know so many things about magic. What the hell gives?"

Mana chuckles slightly to herself as she continues to keep her glance locked with Asuna's. "You know I'm also a mercenary as well. In that line of work, you take and retain whatever information you can. I think it would be best for us to leave it at that."

The sharpshooter smiles and nods at Asuna as she calmly walks towards a still cheering Konoka. She pulls the girl from the celebration and whispers something to the girl, who blinks a couple of times in confusion. Nodding, Mana reaches into her pocket and pulls out a small sheet of paper, handing it over to the young girl who smiles and nods back to the taller girl.

"Well, I think that all of you should be able to handle things from here. Asuna, you should tell Negi-sensei that they're getting out of there soon." Mana smiles at the entourage as she grabs the ropes that are currently binding her quarry. She flips Ku Fei and Kaede a thumbs up as she tosses the two captives over her shoulder, causing her fellow classmates to look on with a look of surprise from the girl's strength. "Don't worry. I'll make sure you two get your cut."

The girls continue to stare shocked at Mana as she calmly makes her way back towards Mahora, sweatdrops on most of the girls' heads. The shock and silence is broken soon after as Kaede lets out a small chuckle.

"Mana is quite a mystery, isn't she? It's amazing how much she knows for being a middle school student."

"She strange, but not bad person." Ku lets out a chuckle as well as she nods to the ninja. "What she give Konoka-san?"

"Instructions on how to get them out of the cage." Konoka beams as she looks over the incantation on the paper. Asakura looks over the girl's shoulder at the paper and shakes her head as she can't make out anything written on it. The redhead pouts over her inability to read it and sits next to the stream, arms crossed over her chest. "I always wondered why grandpa insisted that I studied Latin. I can do this…I think."

* * *

"So…you had to kiss all of us?" Ako blushes at the realization of her first kiss, not quite expecting it to be with a boy who hadn't even hit puberty yet. Yuna, meanwhile, is blushing herself but still laughing. 

"Wow…my first kiss was with Negi-kun! I honestly didn't see that one coming, but oh well. It's a good thing that Clyde-kun is the only one who remembered anything about it, otherwise the Rep wouldn't be too happy…"

"You didn't have to tell them all of that!" Negi harshly whispers into the blonde boy's ear, doing little to wipe the grin off of his face. "I was doing fine until you mentioned that trip into the past. That was completely unnecessary!"

"Ah, calm down, Negi. It isn't that bad. Besides, explanations can be a bit of a bore. I figured I'd just spice the story up a little bit with a nice little anecdote."

"You got that right Clyde. Besides Negi, don't you think the girls would start asking questions about how they got their own pactios otherwise?"

The whispering boys and ermine are brought out of their whispered conversation as Yuna stomps her foot on the floor, the trio simultaneously pivoting to attention.

"Just out of curiosity, does Clyde-kun have a…um…what was it again?"

"Pactio." Ako picks up the slack for her fellow sports club comrade before pressing the question herself. "So just out of curiosity, do you have a partner?"

Clyde chuckles to himself nervously before answering. "Well, yeah, but I haven't seen him for a long time now."

"Oh, well that's too bad. You could have really used the hel…" Yuna trails off as something odd registers. "Him? Clyde-kun, are you…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Clyde waves his hands in front of him defensively, having a very good idea what the basketball girl is getting at. "I really need to learn how to explain myself better. There's other ways to form a pact besides a kiss. Chamo, draw me up a circle."

"Um…no offense, Clyde, but maybe it isn't a good idea."

"Don't worry about it! Nothing bad is going to happen."

"But…sigh whatever." The ermine grumbles in defeat as he pulls out his chalk and begins work. "I tried to warn him, but he doesn't want to listen…"

As soon as Chamo finishes up his construction, Clyde grabs Negi by the arm and drags him into the circle, causing Chamo's eyebrow to lift up a little.

"_Oh…I get it. Yeah, that should work fine. It will be interesting, to say the least. I was worried he was going to use one of the girls for a minute there…"_

"You see, one of the other ways to form a pact is through blood, gross as it may be."

"B..Blood?" Ako's face blanches over at the word. "Isn't that a little unsanitary?"

"Yeah, kind of. But I don't have any diseases and I don't think Negi does, do you?"

"Well, no…but what are you doing this for?"

"To prove a point, Negi. You see, this isn't any different than being blood brothers. Seriously, kids slice themselves on rusty cans all the time to do this, only in our case, it is actually helpful."

And with that, Clyde takes a gash from his forearm and puts it to a cut on Negi's cheek, causing the magic circle to come to life much to the amazement of the girls that are watching. As the blinding light engulfs the pair, Chamo tosses a blank card into the magic circle. After a few seconds, the light subsides, leaving only the battered duo and a card lying on the floor between them. Clyde chuckles as he picks the card up before handing it over to the pair of amazed girls.

"And that is a kissing loophole right there. That only comes into play if the partner is a cute girl."

"Speaking of cute, this card rules!" Yuna gushes over the card, her eyes sparkling as she switches her glance between the Negi on paper and the real boy. "This is so cool!"

"Why is Negi-sensei…a cowboy?" Ako scratches her head in confusion as the young boy grabs the card away from the girls.

"Cowboy? What on earth….?" Negi looks over the card with a look of shock on his face. Sure enough, on the card is a picture of Negi, decked out in blue jeans, chaps, boots with spurs, a denim shirt, neckerchief tied around his face, and to top off the look, a cowboy hat. The boy looks closer at the picture and sees just what exactly his weapon of choice on it is: in both of the boy's hands is a coal black revolver.

"Pretty awesome, isn't it…partner?"

"Partner!? I thought you just did this as an example!" Negi adamantly shakes his head, causing Clyde to laugh even louder.

"Aw, come on now. A little versatility can go a long ways. You're always worried about protecting your students, so just think of this as another way to do that. Besides, seeing as how I can't use my magic without having a plant to manipulate, I may as well get some usage out of it by lending some power to you." Clyde continues to smirk at the small sensei before opting to change the subject. "So, how exactly are we going to get out of here before those two wake up?"

"Well, Tatsumiya-san told Asuna that she had a way to get us out if we could knock out Fate."

"The hottie with the sniper rifle?" Clyde scratches his head in confusion at Negi's last statement, ignoring the strange looks from Ako and Yuna as he does so. "How would she know how to get us out of this jam? What would she know about magic? Other than the fact that it exists, I mean."

"I don't know any more about it than you do Clyde, but she knows how to help us. Right now, that's the only thing that's important."

"Yeah, but it's still a little str…"

Suddenly, a white light emanates throughout the cage. As quickly as the light appeared, it vanishes, leaving Clyde to finish his thoughts.

"..ange that somebody would know how exactly to open up a device…like…this…what the hell?"

Clyde slowly trails off as he notices that he and the rest of the cage hostages are now standing in a forest clearing next to a stream with half a dozen more girls surrounding them. The boy, unable to stand on his wounded appendage any longer, free falls backwards, landing square on the surprisingly comfortable grass.

"Are you okay, Clyde-kun?" The boy looks up, the face of a concerned Konoka only a couple of feet from his own. "Asuna said your leg wasn't doing too…"

Konoka trails off as she looks over towards her battered and bruised teacher, the cuts on his face still letting blood escape with every heartbeat. On instinct, the young girl runs to the injured Negi, nearly trampling Clyde in the process. The blonde chuckles as he watches the girls walk over one by one to join Negi. His chuckles quickly change to whimperings though as somebody pokes at his injured knee. The boy quickly snaps around to see Asakura glancing at him.

"You know this is killing me, right Clyde-san?" The reporter shoots the boy a smirk as he grimaces in pain. "All of this stuff that's going on around here and I can't write anything at all about it. You owe me big time for having to sit on all of these stories."

"Hey, hey, hey…can we quit with the poking of my knee? It doesn't really feel too good, y'know? And besides, if you are as good of a reporter as you seem to be, it shouldn't be any trouble for you to find a big scoop that you could actually use…matter of fact, maybe there's a way you can use this without giving any secrets away. It's the least we can do for you trying to help us…"

* * *

"Hmm…'Local Thieves Arrested on Mahora Campus' by Kazumi Asakura…" The Headmaster runs his hand through his beard as he reads over the sheet of paper sitting in front of him on his desk. The old man's glance switches between the story on his desk and the trio of Negi, Asakura, and a magically healed Clyde before he speaks again. "Well, I suppose it would be a good way to explain things to anybody that may have possibly seen Tatsumiya-san carrying those two Kansai rouges…we can go with this story, Asakura-kun." 

Upon the Headmaster's last sentence, Asakura wraps an arm around both of the young mages flanking her and pulls them in for a hug, causing her and Clyde's foreheads to lightly clank together. The two teens chuckle before the redhead opens her mouth.

"Negi-sensei, Clyde-kun, you guys rock! Thank you both for helping me with this! Headmaster-sensei, thank you too. This is the kind of scoop I've been hoping for. I mean, it isn't like revealing the existence of magic…don't worry guys, that secret is safe anyways, but it's still a good bit to help me out a little bit. Eh?"

Asakura blinks a couple of times before looking down under her chin, raising an eyebrow as she notices just where she pulled Negi. The girl haphazardly releases her grip around the boy's neck, after which he frees his face of its current resting place, his eyes nearly bugging out of his head.

"Ooh, Negi-sensei…trying to force yourself on a student. Naughty, naughty."

"Force myself? Wha..?"

Before the young teacher has a chance to defend himself, Clyde decides to take his turn at razzing the poor boy.

"Yeah, that's very bad, Negi-sensei. If you are like this now, I'd hate to think about what will happen when your hormones start to really kick in."

The chuckling of the students and denials from Negi are brought to an abrupt end, however, as the headmaster clears his throat. The trio quickly stands at attention, Asakura and Clyde shooting each other amused glances.

"Now if you'll excuse us, Asakura-kun, I have business with these two boys here. You are dismissed."

Asakura pouts slightly before bowing her head to the old man, pivoting and leaving the office soon after. The Headmaster stands up from his desk and paces slowly in front of the two young mages, neither of which sure of what the old man is going to say. Finally the tension is broken as the old man puts his hand on the shoulder of Negi, his beard rising on his face as if to indicate a smile.

"I am very proud of you, Negi-kun. We knew that Kotaro was involved with the Kansai rouges, but we had no idea that he would bring the rest of them with him. Not only did you apprehend Kotaro, but you were able to round up Fate Averruncus as well. Nicely done!"

"I couldn't have done it without Clyde and the others though…" Negi hangs his head before continuing. "I'm sorry for failing as a teacher and placing even more students in danger."

"I wouldn't be hard on yourself, Negi-kun." The Headmaster's words bring the boy's head up out of the figurative gutter. "After listening to their explanations, Akashi and Izumi both followed you on their own impulses. Even I didn't know that Kotaro would have a trap like that or that he would try to take hostages in such a brazen manner. And besides, the two girls weren't hurt at all. You did your job by protecting them…Speaking of doing their jobs…sorry about this Negi-kun, but it wasn't my call."

The young boy blinks a couple of times in confusion at the Headmaster before he feels something grasp his hand. Looking down, Negi notices the glove that the Headmaster had given Clyde before they left on their assignment wrapped around his left wrist. The boy tries to pull himself free, but is unable to do so as a pale red light engulfs the duo. A few seconds later, the light subsides and Clyde removes his gloved hand, revealing what looks like a black tattoo on Negi's wrist. The black band is very similar to something he has seen before and even done to himself when he wanted to help the Baka Rangers a few months back. The only difference is that instead of multiple bands, there is just a single one with the symbol XIV breaking up the otherwise solid band.

"Sorry about this too, Negi." Clyde shakes his head sadly as he takes the glove off of his hand, tossing the now useless item in the trash. "Suspended or not, the fine folks back in Wales wanted me to deliver that particular part of the punishment. Your magic is to be sealed for a fortnight. Truth be told, we're pretty lucky. Originally they wanted your magic to be sealed for two whole months, but considering the little unseen complication we had with the insane pale child, they actually decided to cut us a little bit of slack. The Headmaster definitely went to bat for us, that's for sure. This kind, sweet, wonderfully delightful gentleman here that so elegantly…"

"Flattery isn't going to get you anywhere, Clyde-kun." The stern tone the Headmaster's voice takes is enough to shut up the blonde and make him bow his head in respect. Having put the blonde in his place, the old man turns back to Negi, whom at this point is still looking over his new two week tattoo. "Negi, I trust that you have no objections to your punishment, correct?"

The aforementioned mage looks up from his wrist at the Headmaster, a small smile painted on his face. "None at all, sir. Thank you for showing leniency towards us."

"It's the least I could do, especially considering that your task was slightly more dangerous than we planned. You are free to go. I'm sure that the girls are still a little worried about you."

Negi's smile slightly broadens as he nods to the Headmaster and walks out of the door. Clyde follows suit and makes his exit soon after. Konoe chuckles to himself and has a sip from the tea cup on his desk as the pair leaves, turning his glance to the corner of the room after a couple of seconds where a figure is sitting in the shadows. Taking a couple of steps out, the identity of the person is revealed as Takamichi sits on the window sill and looks out over the campus.

"I'd say that those two handled that situation pretty well. They might not have even needed that backup."

The Headmaster strokes his beard as he continues to look at Takamichi before replying. "I'm sure that they could have, but with that strange child, I thought it would be wise to give them a little hand. After all, Negi and Clyde are only children."

"True…so, what's the Kansai Association going to do with those rouges anyways?"

"Hmm…It's hard to say. The only thing that I know for sure is that that Fate boy is going to be mentally evaluated…it's a shame, really. That boy seems to have plenty of potential, but not the stability to make anything of it."

The younger man chuckles as he opens the window he his gazing out of, putting a cigarette between his lips and firing it up. After taking a drag, he turns back to the Headmaster and smiles at him.

"Things could get rather interesting for Negi-kun being without magic for a little while. Let's hope that he has a quiet time these next couple of weeks."

Upon the last sentence, the Headmaster breaks out into a chuckling fit as well.

"With 3-A, there isn't going to be any quiet time for Negi-kun…that's something that magic can't even resolve…such a lot of spirited young girls."

Konoe pushes his chair from his desk and stands up, joining the younger teacher by the window. Both men look out at the front of the school as the sun sets on the horizon, both curious to see what adventures await the son of the Thousand Master.

* * *

Spell Translations: "_**Turbo ventus, redimio meus hostilis aer!" **_Tornado of wind, bind my enemy in the air! 

**Post Chapter Musings: **Hooray for creativity! Figured renaming the bottom part of my notes saves me from having an Author's Notes sandwich...yeah, it's a bad joke, I know. So our favorite little teacher has gotten out of his latest jam just a smidge for the worst, with no magic for a couple of weeks anyways. So what is going to happen to the poor boy now? That's for me to know and for everyone else to read and find out. As for Negi having a pactio and being a partner for once, I thought it would be a unique twist. Gotta admit, the idea has potential...plus the picture I saw online that served as the motivation for Cowboy Negi made me laugh too much to not utilize the idea. Questions, comments, complaints, short stories, or just need a hug? Drop a review, email at or try to chat live with me on AIM at Jack Midnight 04. With combat going to the backburner for a little bit, it will be time to dabble more in the romance/comedy genre. Hopefully that will be something for everyone to look forward to. Happy reading and I'll see everybody shortly with Chapter 8.

_-Midnight_


	8. PreFestival Scramble! What To Do?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things that I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. I just got back from vacation, and the bank account is a smidge on the empty side, so good luck with getting any moolah from that.

**Pre Chapter Musings:** Hey, bet some of you thought I was dead and buried, right? Buried, yes, as being #113 on the "last posted" shows, but not dead by any stretch. More on that below after the story. I've got a lot of things to catch up on in the ways of writing and reading, so I'm not gonna bore you with that. Without further adu, here's Chapter 8. Enjoy.

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 8**

"Good morning, Negi…eh?"

The usually chipper demeanor of Konoka Konoe turns to one of worry when she notices the current state of the young boy whom she was addressing. Instead of sleeping in as the young girl originally thought, she finds that Negi instead seems to be in the middle of another nightmare as he is both shuddering and covered in a cold sweat. Worried, Konoka nudges the boy's shoulder to try to rouse him. Unsuccessful, the girl puts more weight and force behind her second attempt, which also ends in failure. Panicking and not knowing what else to do, Konoka picks up a flower pitcher sitting on the coffee table, tosses the flowers to the side, and splashes the water onto the boy, who quickly snaps back to reality.

"Thank goodness you're okay, Negi-kun." The young girl is quick to embrace the still shaken youth, letting go of her hold as she realizes that she is cutting off his air supply. "Hehe…sorry about that. Lemme guess, another nightmare?

Negi sighs and shakes his head sadly.

"I don't know why I keep having them, to be honest. I've never had problems with nightmares before, not even when…" Negi trails off, apparently not wanting to go any further on the particular subject, managing to paste a small smile on his face before changing the topic of conversation. "…Anyways, thank you very much for waking me up, Konoka. I really appreciate it.

Konoka notes Negi's changing tune and follows suit, hoping to make things a little easier for the youth. "Um…I made eggs and bacon for breakfast. Apple or orange juice?"

"Apple, thanks." Negi's smile broadens ever so slightly as he sits down at the table, waiting for his breakfast. As the girl turns her back, the boy lets out a large sigh and shakes his head, the images of his nightmare still haunting him even while awake.

"_Calm down, Negi. It was just a bad dream. Nothing to get all worried about, even if it did feel real again…"_

"Are you sure that you're fine, Negi-kun?"

The boy snaps out of his depressed stupor and chuckles nervously, dismissing Konoka's concern by waving his hands in front of him.

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry for worrying you Konoka. I'm fine, I promise."

Konoka thinks of saying something as Negi clearly isn't fine, but decides to keep playing along with the charade so as to not upset the young teacher. Negi, deciding to try to get the nightmare out of his head, grabs his lesson planner and prepares for the upcoming classes in the next hour or so. Sleep deprived or not, the boy figures it wouldn't do to have yet another setback in his class in such a short amount of time.

* * *

Classes are set to start in ten minutes, and for a change from the past few days, Evangeline and Chachamaru are both present and accounted for. While the android is exchanging pleasantries with a few of the girls in class, Eva just sits in the back of the classroom in her usual spot waiting for the day to come to an end and pondering just why the hell she's here today. It isn't like she's going to learn anything new when compared to the 15 years she's spent in the same class, let alone the hundreds of years traveling the globe prior to the little School Hell Curse incident. The vampire actually finds herself nodding off before hearing the chair beside her being moved. Eva's head quickly snaps to her left to see Satsuki sitting next to her. 

"Hmm…what? Did we get a new seating chart or something?" Evangeline blinks a couple of times at the chef, relieved that if that was the case that she was at least put with the only girl in the class that she could stand.

"Well, kind of. We got a new student, so they switched my seating up. Hope you don't mind, Evangeline-san. I know how you like your privacy."

"Hmm…it's fine, I suppose. One more girl in class won't matter too much…" Evangeline trails off as she notices her new deskmate shaking her head slowly. "What, there's more than one?"

"No, there is a new student. The thing is though…well, see for yourself."

Satsuki casually points towards the door and the sight is nearly enough to make the vampire jump out of her seat as she recognizes the blonde in the doorway. While the hair is shorter than the last time she saw him, there's no doubt about it in her mind about the identity of her newfound "classmate."

"Great…the Observer's here…" Evangeline mutters dryly under her breath as Satsuki looks on at her new deskmate in confusion.

"Are you feeling alright, Evangeline? Something's on your mind."

"…It's nothing you have to worry about Satsuki. I'll be fine."

Evangeline continues to stare a hole right through the oblivious Clyde, the vein in her forehead growing larger and pulsating more forcefully with each passing second. She thinks of saying something to the boy, but the thought is erased as something even more irritating offends her senses; that being the blabbering of a certain pink haired gymnast to her sports club friends.

"Aw, c'mon already." Makie pouts, looking at the stonewalled faces of Yuna and Ako before pressing the issue again. "Why'd you two play hooky? The bigger question though is why didn't you tell Akira and me? We would've played hooky with you!"

The comment gets a raised eyebrow from the tall swimmer standing behind Makie, who after letting out a small chuckle replies to her friend.

"Makie, are you sure that it would be a good idea for you to do that with your grades?"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm just saying that you need to hit the books a little more, Makie. Advice from one friend to another."

"Yeah!" Yuna jumps into the conversation in agreement. "Your scores are a little…um…they kinda suck, don't they?"

Yuna's bluntness gets rewarded with a soft elbow into the gut from Ako, who tries her hardest at damage control.

"She was a little rude, but Yuna does have a point. You do need to study a little harder, y'know?"

Makie fiddles with her fingers for a while before looking back up to her sports club companions.

"Yeah, I suppose you guys are ri…hey, wait a minute!" The slight expression of sadness on the gymnast's face changes into a smirk as she points a finger at Yuna. "You jumped in to change the subject! C'mon, we're best pals. All four of us are. Fill us in!"

Ako and Yuna look at each other, both of them chuckling to themselves nervously as Makie moves her glare from one girl to the other. Akira for her part is just sitting back, partially hoping to not unintentionally cause a scene like Yuna did, partially curious to where Makie's little tirade might lead. Finally, after what seems like an eternity to her, Ako decides to speak up, hoping against hope that subtlety is something that will kick in with Makie in the immediate future.

"Alright, I guess it won't hurt." Ako sighs thinking over her next words carefully so as to not give the wrong idea. "That little errand that Negi-sensei and Clyde-kun had to run yesterday…well we kind of helped out."

"Kind of helped out…?" Makie looks at the nurse with a confused look before the smirk emerges again. "Is that a nice way of saying you all went on a group date or something?"

"Makie, I don't think that's quite what Ako was saying…" Akira tries to jump in, but to no avail as the wheels are already turning in the gymnast's head. A swing and a miss for Ako indeed.

"You know that isn't going to go over well with Chizuru and Rep, right? You know, you two are trying to take their boyfriend and all…"

"Excuse me!?" The last comment just happened to reach the ears of said class representative. "Why does everybody keep saying that!? We were just being nice!"

"Well, at least it's a step up from toddlers, Ayaka."

"You want to jump in on this too, Asuna? You with your fondness for senior citizens? Talk about grave robbing!"

"You want a piece of this, rich girl?"

"I want the whole thing, monkey!"

And so with that last insult, the vast majority focuses their attention on the latest installment of the Kagurazaka/Yukihiro feud, complete with Sakurako running the betting table as per usual. Makie for her part chuckles nervously at the havoc she's unintentionally caused before turning back to her trio of best friends.

"Um…oopsie. Heh, we can just pretend that didn't happen…so you four are all part of some love square or something?"

"No, nothing like that at all!" Yuna argues, causing the pink haired girl to raise an eyebrow in suspicion. "If we tell you a secret, can you be sure to keep it?"

"No problem, Yuna." Akira calmly nods before continuing nonchalantly. "That's what friends are for, right?"

"I can keep quiet too! Gymnast's honor!"

Yuna looks around to make sure that the rest of the class is still entranced by the fight before continuing on.

"All right. The truth is that Negi-kun and Clyde-kun are wizards…"

"…Fans!" The quartet of girls all react with a smidge of shock as Clyde puts an arm around Yuna's shoulders with a broad smile plastered across his face; the only thing to lead to suspicion being the nervous chuckling that is emitting from the boy.

"Yeah, that's right! We're all big Washington Wizards fans! We didn't do the best this year, but we'll rebound! Right, Yuna?"

The pigtailed girl blinks a couple of times in confusion before deciding to play along with the boy's excuse, mentally slapping herself for almost blowing the two boys' cover.

"Y..Yeah! Even though Jordan retired, we'll be fine! 2003-2004 is our year!"

Yuna quickly picks up on Clyde's nervous chuckling herself, leaving Makie and Akira with raised eyebrows and Ako shaking her head sadly. Before anybody in that little group has time to say anything further, all attention goes to the Ayaka/Asuna brawl, as Negi has finally made his way to the classroom and is hoping to see the fight broken up, rather than any desks, windows, or chairs.

"Girls, please! It hasn't been too good of a morning for me. Can't you settle this peacefully?"

"She started it, Negi-sensei!" Ayaka pouts, hoping to win over the pint sized teacher. "I didn't want to get in a fight."

"Please!" Asuna scoffs, growing more irritated by the second at the rep's little fake sob story. "You were walking on thin ice this morning with that little monkey girl joke during my paper route. You were just asking for this since sunrise!"

"You are such a liar, Asuna! I didn't start anything! You di…eh?"

Ayaka is cut off mid rant as both her and Asuna find arms wrapped around their shoulders, the set of arms in question belonging to Clyde.

"Now, now, now…Why do you two have to be like this? It isn't healthy for either of you."

"Butt out!"

"You don't know anything about this, Clyde-san!"

Clyde recoils from the female tandem that has just yelled at him, blinking a couple of times before responding, albeit foolishly.

"Wow…did anybody tell you two that you look really cute when you're angry?

* * *

"Is that any better, Clyde?" 

The pained blonde grimaces as he gives Chizuru a thumbs up, wincing slightly as the well-endowed girl re-applies a cold compress to the two lumps on the boy's head. The fox whistle from one of the girls in class only serves to make Clyde blush as Chizuru continues to tend to the boy's wounds. The class takes their attention off the scene as Negi clears his throat in an attempt to get the class' attention focused back on him.

"Alright then, now that you're all settled down, I think it would be a good idea if we decided on what our class will do for the upcoming cultural festival. Does anybody have any ideas?"

Negi scouts over the classroom, waiting for the light bulbs to turn on in the heads of his students. Sure enough, after a few seconds of silence, the room explodes in cheers and raised hands.

"We could do a food stand!"

"We've been working really hard with our band!"

"Haunted houses are always fun! It is October, y'know?"

"We can certainly leave me out of this foolishness."

"You're no fun at all, Evangeline. Don't be such a spoil sport!"

"We have martial arts tournament?"

"I'm a cheerleader, not a kung fu champion! How's that fair?"

"Girls, do you think we could try to be a little more organized with these ideas? I'm losing track here."

"C'mon, Negi! You're a genius. Keep up there, sport!"

"You need to show Negi-sensei more respect, Clyde-san!"

"You still look cu…"

"Now, now. Don't put your foot in your mouth again, Clyde. I don't have another cold compress."

Negi sighs in defeat, his idea of hand raising and name calling interface obviously failing miserably. The young boy mutters something inaudibly, a gust of wind coming through the open windows in reply. As the class dives on their loose papers hoping to avoid an unnecessary chase, Negi again clears his throat and gets the attention of the class focused back on him yet again.

"OK, let's try this again. Can we please wait to be called on this time?"

The young teacher sighs as he is treated to an encore performance of what occurred just a few moments prior. A figurative light bulb forms over the youngster's head as he comes up with an idea that won't involve him trying to decipher the comments of dozens of schoolgirls and a schoolboy.

"I have a new idea! Since we can't think of a more orderly way to do this, everybody write your ideas down. We'll draw out of a hat and take the first five and vote on them. How's that sound, class?"

"Great idea, Negi-sensei!" Ayaka beams on in approval. Clyde for a second can swear that he sees flowers around the blonde for a split second, but adds it up to his eyes playing tricks on him. Asuna for her part scoffs and shakes her head in disgust, keeping the volume of said scoff down so as to avoid a second confrontation in class, at least for today. Negi sighs in relief as he looks around the room for something to use. Konoka aiming to be helpful digs through her backpack, pulling out a beret. The brown eyed girl jots her idea down on a small piece of paper and puts it in the beret before passing it around the classroom. After a minute or so, the small hat is packed to the brim with sheets of paper before finding it's way to the front of the class to Negi. The small boy dips in and grabs the first lucky winner, his cheeks flushing red as he reads the paper.

"Um…well…our first idea is 'kissing booth.' Er…"

This little suggestion is met with the whole gamut of emotions, from completely thrilled over the prospect of purchasing a smooch with the tiny teacher or the grinning blonde, others not really wanting to sell their lips away to a parade of perverted teenagers…or Clyde. Negi chuckles nervously, hoping to find else out of the hat that will hopefully not get him mauled by an assortment of females.

"Pick number two is…oh crumb. Pick two is 'swimming suit car/bike wash."

"What the hell!?" Asuna grits her teeth at the offerings thus far. "It's the middle of October!"

"I actually have to agree with Asuna." Ayaka adds in her two cents. "What exactly would that have to do with a cultural festival?"

Negi sighs yet again and reaches for another idea, hoping against hope that the third time is the charm.

"Pick three looks like… 'cosplay contest."

"Cosplay?" Makie scratches her head in confusion. "What's that?"

As one of the gymnast's classmates explains the concept to her, all Chisame can do in the back of the classroom is silently fume over the girl's unintentional ignorance. Negi notes the computer whiz's irritation and decides to mosey along with the selection process, hoping to be able to keep his favorite undercover net idol from unleashing hell in his classroom.

"Next we have…oh good grief. Seriously! 'Topless café!?"

The usually lively classroom finds itself paused in shock at the reveal of the last idea. Slowly and angrily, the gazes of 31 girls make their way over to an oblivious Clyde, who at this point is half asleep in his desk. Taking a deep breath, Asuna quietly stands up from her desk, grabs her English textbook, and throws it at the drowsy boy, making him fall out of his chair in shock. As the blonde holds his head in pain and attempts to regain his bearings, Asuna storms across the room and grabs the boy by the collar of his white shirt, picking him up in a feat of strength that raises the eyebrows of many of the girls.

"What the hell is wrong with you!?" Asuna's accusation being screamed in his face is enough to make Clyde's sore head go away. "Are you that desperate for a girlfriend that you need to try to resort to that?"

Clyde blinks a couple of times in confusion as the redhead continues to glare a hole right through him. Seeing that the blonde is clueless, Asuna sighs and turns his head towards the blackboard, where a disappointed Negi has written the idea down before quickly drawing a slash through it.

"What? You think that was my idea? I'm not a pervert, OK?"

Asuna is so intent on trying to terrorize Clyde that she fails to notice as the blonde subtlety unbuttons his shirt. Clyde flashes the girl a grin before suddenly dropping to the floor to escape from his shirt. Unfortunately for the blonde youth, forgetting about the black tie around his neck, as well as the top shirt button it covers proves to be very bad as Asuna simply grabs his tie on the way down, effectively choking the boy until he stands back up.

"Not going to work, Blondie!" Asuna quickly re-establishes her grip on Clyde's collar. "Fess up!"

"I put in Romeo and Juliet! Plays are fun!" Clyde pauses as he looks around the class to see a few of the girls seemingly believing him, yet the vast majority still skeptical. "Come on now, would I really be that stupid to suggest topless café? That would be like wearing a suit made of steaks in a lion's den!"

"He's right."

The attention of the class shoots back up to the front of the room as Negi holds the fifth idea in his hand on a piece of paper easily larger than any of the others that have been pulled. "Idea number five is 'Romeo and Juliet. A concept by Clyde Metro. Hoorah."

Negi holds the sheet up to the class, the whole thing the boy said being written on it. At the bottom there is a picture of a chibi Clyde flashing the victory sign. Asuna sighs as she lets go of the boy before picking up her textbook. As she walks back to her desk, Asuna looks behind her shoulder and lets out a nonchalant "sorry." Clyde nods and sighs as he sits back down and buttons his shirt back up. Negi sighs in frustration as he has long since lost control of the class and is about to continue on when the bell rings.

"Class over…well, we'll continue with our class concept…"

Negi looks about to see only a somewhat dazed Clyde sitting in his chair still buttoning up his shirt.

"…tomorrow." Negi shakes his head over the short attention span of his class as Clyde laughs and finishes buttoning his shirt.

"I think that could have went a little better there, eh?"

"Topless café!?" Negi grits his teeth as he glares at the blonde who is now re-adjusting his tie. "You're lucky that I pulled out your other idea. Seriously, what were you thinking?"

"It wasn't me! I just put the one idea in. Just because I'm a teenage boy automatically makes it my fault? Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty!? Honestly, nobody took that whole process seriously…uh oh."

"Uh oh?" Negi looks over at Clyde, only to notice him with a worried expression on his face. Negi's look of concern changes to a slight scowl. "Are you trying to be funny or something? Because it isn't reall…"

Negi is abruptly cut off as he hears someone utter his name sternly from the doorway. The youth quickly pivots around to see a none too amused Evangeline looking right at him.

"M…Master, good afterno…"

"I thought we agreed that I wasn't your master, you ignorant little brat!" Negi winces at the sharpness of the words before the vampire continues. "Because of you and your little ramblings, I had to have Chachamaru's memory reset. Really now, what were you hoping to accomplish by messing with the memory of my assistant? But no matter. The problem has been solved. Also…" A smirk crosses the vampire's face as she briefly pauses. "…I thought I would give you fair warning for the next full moon."

"Next full moon? But Evangeline…"

Negi is cut off again, not by words this time, but rather by fear as the girl glares at him, making the boy feel as though she had burnt a hole through his very soul simply with her gaze. Evangeline chuckles slightly before turning her attention to Clyde.

"Observer, I strongly suggest that you keep yourself out of this little matter. I would hate to have anything…unfortunate happen that might result in your untimely demise."

The evil smirk on Eva's face grows larger as she turns and walks away from the duo, leaving the confused boys to stare on at the vampire for a few seconds before deliberating over her little discussion with them.

"Kill…us?" Negi gulps, full well recalling the power that the girl had shown while training him, let alone the full force she displayed when she had helped out in Kyoto. The look of worry turns to one of frustration as Negi turns to the pondering boy beside him, apparently the previous debate finding itself on the backburner for the time being. "Clyde, just exactly how long was that potion supposed to last for?"

"The batch I brewed up that night was only supposed to be for short term memory, Negi." Clyde rubs his hand over his chin as he tries to find a solution. "Truth be told, I was kind of expecting her not to drink any of that junk. I was thinking that she would've been able to sense the magic coming from that spiked punch a mile away. Another thing that is strange to me is why it would effect her at all. Vampires don't have much of a metabolism, save for the people juice thing."

"So how much of her memory do you think got wiped out?"

"Seems to me like she's forgotten the last couple of months. The little death glare she showed me this morning lets me think that she at least still remembers my first trip here to Mahora. That was right after that little incident where she rigged the school's power grid. Truth be told…" Clyde pauses for a few seconds before a broad smile crosses his face. "I'm not exactly sure what to do. Sucks for us, eh?"

Negi face faults at the boy's lax attitude before grabbing his collar, obviously even more frustrated than he was a couple of minutes ago. Negi shakes the blonde boy a couple of times, snapping him out of his little laughing fit.

"Do you have any idea what she's going to do during the next full moon!? She's going to come after me, and probably you too!"

"Meh, so what? You've beaten her before, haven't you?"

"With the help of my magic, Clyde! Something I'm not going to have next week when the full moon is out!"

"Oh right…details, details…" Clyde chuckles to himself as Negi continues to watch on with a mixture of frustration and confusion.

"Clyde, what are we going to do!?"

"Ah, she's bluffing. With all the added attention that you've been getting from the bigwigs here at Mahora, she'd be nuts to try to do anything to you. It isn't like she'd have anywhere to run, y'know?"

"That hasn't stopped her before!" Negi pauses and takes in a deep breath as he tries to calm himself down, full well knowing that panicking is likely the last thing he should be doing. "I'd still much rather be prepared though, Clyde. Losing my magic has made me realize just how dependent I've become on it. Without my magic, I'm nothing."

"Aw, don't say that, Negi." Clyde puts an arm around the younger boy's neck and jokingly puts him in a weak headlock. "If it bothers you so much why don't you take up some self defense or something just in case something happens to your magic again in the future? It seems that with Evangeline the way she is right now that you have a lot of free time cleared up now."

"So you'll teach me, Clyde?"

Clyde for his part looks down at the younger boy for a few moments and blinks before breaking out into laughter. Clyde slaps Negi on the back during his laughing fit, accidentally sending the boy face first into the classroom's floor tiles. Negi picks himself up and finds himself in a slight daze as Clyde gets his laughter under control long enough to address his friend.

"Oh, that's good Negi. Seriously though, you don't want me to train you." It is now Clyde's turn to sigh as he seems to reminisce on something. "Besides, don't you remember how well I fared against that Fate kid? True, he knew all of my moves from when he read my mind, but it wasn't exactly like I knew too many of them to begin with. Just a few of the more essential punches, kicks, holds, whatever."

"I see…" Negi sighs in defeat before Clyde clears his throat.

"Hey, don't get so down, Negi. How about that Chinese girl? Fu Kei, isn't it?"

"Ku Fei." Negi corrects the blonde before his face lightens up. "Do you really think she'd teach me?"

"Why wouldn't she? It isn't like she hasn't helped you before in the past. Didn't you say she helped out a great deal the first time you had to deal with that Fate kid?"

"Well yes, but I'm not sure if she is taking students or anything of that sort."

"Aw, just turn on the charm, Negi. All these girls here are nuts about you. I'm sure that if you asked nicely, she would help train you in a heartbeat. You got to stop thinking negatively all the time."

"…You're right." The look of confusion and doubt on the boy's face is now replaced by one of resolve and confidence. "Thank you for the idea, Clyde. I'm going to go try to find her and ask if she'll help me."

Negi smiles and flips the older boy a thumbs up as he runs out of the classroom. Clyde chuckles to himself as he watches the boy run down the hallway, a look of concern quickly washing over his face as the boy vanishes from view.

"_That isn't the only thing bothering you right now, is it Negi? Maybe he's worried about his father? I'm sure that Fate wasn't the only one that would be interested in using the Thousand Master's powers…that boy really does need to learn to open up though instead of putting the weight of the world on his shoulders…although, it is quite impressive to see someone as young as Negi trying to shield those he cares about from any worries. He'll be fine…I think."_

Clyde snaps out of his thoughts and chuckles as he reaches into his pants pocket and pulls out an envelope. The boy pulls a sheet of paper out and smiles as he looks it over. Now whistling to himself, Clyde puts the paper back into the envelope and makes his way out of the classroom, shutting off the light and closing the door shut behind him. If the blonde wouldn't have been whistling, odds are he would have heard the shouts of something from inside of Konoka's beret, still sitting on Negi's desk. Sure enough, a couple of seconds after the mysterious shout is uttered, an ermine peeks his head out from the folded papers.

"Oh, gee, that's great! Leave the ermine here to starve! Let's not care about the familiar!" Chamo's anger quickly subsides into a light chuckle though as he leans up against the beret from the outside and lights up a cigarette. "You are a sly dog, Chamo. Getting to use either Negi's cuteness or the attractiveness of the class to turn a profit. What would brother do without me? He'll be thanking me one day…" The grin on Chamo's face broadens as he blows smoke rings from his little mouth. "And not getting caught for this little scheme was an added bonus. And to think this wouldn't have happened if Konoka hadn't have gotten that new shampoo…what a great smell…"

* * *

Negi looks up at the setting sun and grumbles in frustration. The boy had no idea that he would have such a horrible string of luck as it pertains to finding somebody. None of the other girls had seen Ku Fei either, not even her fellow Baka Rangers. Speaking of which… 

"So why did you decide to drag me with you?" The look of concentration on Negi's face is washed away as Asuna grinds a fist into the top of his head. "Why do you even need to worry about martial arts or self defense anyways?"

"I want to be able to protect my students, Asuna. All of them, including you."

The boy's noble proclamation gets a small chuckle from the red haired girl who slightly eases up on drilling into his skull.

"What do you need to protect me from, Negi? We're partners. It's my job to protect you, remember?"

"I can't keep throwing you into danger though, Asuna!" Negi sighs, something inside clearly bothering him. "I don't want you to end up hurt…or worse."

"Or worse?" Asuna blinks a couple of times before getting a frustrated look on her face as well. "What the hell is that supposed to mean!? You're ten! What horrible, life-threatening thing are you so scared about? Those Kansai loonies are all locked up safely now, right?"

"Well yes, but…"

Asuna throws Negi into a headlock, chuckling and grinning while she does so. Negi for his part shakes his head ever so slightly, wondering why exactly people seem to be fascinated with putting him in that particular wrestling hold.

"But nothing!" We can handle anything! Between you, me, Setsuna, Konoka, Asakura…even Izumi, Akashi, and Clyde, we got it covered…hmm?"

Asuna blinks a couple of times as she focuses on something strange on Negi's wrist. A black band that she's seen somewhere before, only this one has a XIII on it rather than three bands with just a I.

"Negi, just out of curiosity, why did you seal your magic again?"

Negi for his part just chuckles nervously until Asuna puts a little more pressure on her lax headlock. The young boy tries to pull himself free, but to no avail as the stronger girl is able to keep her grip firmly around his neck.

"Oh, don't worry about it Asu..aak!"

Negi trying to dismiss the subject verbally is met with similar failure as all signs of compassion have disappeared from Asuna, whom is obviously none too happy about being left in the dark.

"There's no way you're dodging this question, brat! We're partners, so spill it!"

Asuna eases up on her death grip long enough to give the boy some air before clamping back down on the hold. The boy flails his arms in a desperate attempt at freedom, but is unsuccessful as the redheaded teen is having none of it as she takes the boy to the ground in a maneuver that would make an Olympic wrestler beam with pride. Finally Negi opts to come clean, seeing that as a better fate than blacking out in a headlock.

"My…magic academy…decided to…ack! You want to…let up…a little?"

"And give you the chance to run away? Hell no! Keep…"

And in that split of a second, Asuna finds herself lying on the ground flat on her back. The girl's rage disappears along with the air in her lungs as she looks straight up into the face of a smiling Ku Fei.

"Leaving self open to attack…that dumb, Asuna."

Asuna for her part just grimaces as she takes in deep breaths to get her air back. After a couple of seconds, the redhead does manage to get to a seated position. Noticing that his former captor is temporarily incapacitated, Negi decides to quickly engage in conversation with the blonde martial artist.

"G..Good evening, Ku Fei-san. You know, you're a hard person to find."

"Of course, Negi-bozu." Ku smirks and lets out a chuckle before continuing. "When out training, it best to be alone. Focus more on what you're doing."

"Funny you should say training…" Negi pauses briefly, confirming that this is what he wants to do before continuing. "Ku Fei, I know that you are a very busy girl, so I could understand if you didn't want to do this or if you didn't have the time, but…"

Ku blinks a couple of times in confusion before her smirk returns bigger than before.

"Is Negi-bozu asking me out? Bad for teacher to date student, hmm?"

"Yes it is bad for…no, that's not what I'm getting at! You have it all wrong!" Negi waves his arms in front of him while shaking his head so fast that it makes Asuna and Ku worry that it will unscrew from his neck and go flying off. Ku, not wanting to see the boy's head detach or him throwing up from the dizziness grabs his head and holds it in place.

"Go ahead. No want get sick."

"Well…I was wondering if you would possibly want to train me in martial arts." After the Ku locked in thought over the prospect. "If you don't want to, it isn't a problem, really. It's just that I remember what you were able to do during our trip to Kyoto and I would love to learn some of those maneuvers. Fighting Fate has made me realize that I need something else to fall back on if my magic doesn't work…Ku Fei, are you even listening?"

Negi looks at the blonde girl to see her rubbing her chin with her eyes closed seemingly in thought. After a few more seconds of pondering, Ku opens up her eyes and lets out a quiet chuckle.

"What Negi-bozu do for me? Give better grades?"

Negi's jaw nearly drops to the ground at the martial artist's suggestion of bribery. Asuna, who has gotten enough air back into her lungs to be able to focus on the conversation raises an eyebrow as well, the concept of Ku wanting Negi to fix her grades being a surprise to her as well. As soon as Negi's jaw closes from the shock, a scowl etches across the young teacher's face as he chastises his student.

"Ku Fei-san, that is very inappropriate. If you wanted money for taking on a student, I could understand, but I am not going to let you try to blackmail me into giving you better grades just because I want to learn some self defense! I still cannot believe that you would have even suggested such a ridiculous idea! I expect better of you girls…"

Negi finds himself being cut off yet again today as the now chuckling blonde puts a finger to the rambling mage's mouth.

"Is joke, Negi-bozu. Easy reward with no work takes away from reward's meaning, in school or otherwise. You give good effort, I train you."

"You will!?" Negi and Asuna simultaneously ask, the boy's voice filled with joy while the girl's is with a smidge of surprise. Ku smiles and nods before walking back towards the campus, stopping and looking over her shoulder to talk to the boy one final time.

"Tomorrow morning, five o'clock at main stairs. No be late, Negi-bozu."

And with that, the martial artist flips the boy a thumbs up before taking her leave. Asuna watches as the girl grows ever smaller in the distance, still a little surprised over how easily she was able to flip her over. The redhead shakes her head and remembering the little conversation she was having with her pint sized roommate before being tossed, chuckles slightly and addresses the boy.

"OK, you got your training. Now how about you tell me why the hell you have your magic…"

Asuna turns mid-sentence to notice that Negi has disappeared just as quickly as Ku had on the horizon.

"…sealed." A vein pulsates out of Asuna's forehead as she scans about unsuccessfully for Negi. Not seeing the boy anywhere but figuring he is still probably within earshot, Asuna just lets out a yell.

"Damnit! Negi, this conversation isn't over! I know where you live, you little twerp! You are going to tell me what is going on, whether you want to or not!"

Frustrated, the girl kicks a dirt clod on the ground and storms off towards the dormitories, hoping deep down inside that she is able to calm down enough before she gets back to the room so she doesn't completely trash it…or the small teacher that is living with her.

* * *

Night has now fallen on Mahora as a very tired and exhausted Ayaka Yukihiro stumbles into her dorm room. Natsumi and Chizuru, both already decked out in their pajamas, look up from their book and sweater knitting respectively to see the yawning blonde put her backpack down by the door before kicking off her shoes. 

"Ten o'clock? Rough day, Ayaka?" Chizuru smiles at her blonde roommate as she grabs a bottle of water from the refrigerator.

"Very rough." The blonde haired girl sighs as she opens up her bottle. "Equestrian Club meeting, Floral Arrangement Club meeting, and to top it off, a Student Council meeting. The Cultural Festival does a good job of giving people rather busy schedules."

"My, my, poor Ayaka." Chizuru puts down her sewing project and gives her blonde friend a hug. "Just remember that it's all for a good cause."

"Yeah, you're right I guess." After a few seconds, Ayaka makes her way to the closet next to the entrance and hangs up her school jacket before stumbling to her room. "I think I'm going to call it a night. Night Chizuru, night Natsumi."

As Ayaka walks towards her room, Natsumi looks up from her book with a slightly alarmed look on her face.

"Ayaka, there's something you should know before you go…"

"Natsumi-chan, no offense, but it can wait until tomorrow. I really just want to go to sleep."

"But…"

"Don't worry about it. Besides if I'm fully rested, I'll be able to give whatever you need my full attention. G'night."

And with that, the tired rep opens up her door and stumbles in, leaving behind a worried looking Natsumi and a chuckling Chizuru. After the rep shuts the door behind her, she reaches towards the light switch but finds her fingers stopping a few inches short of their intended goal.

"_Eh, on second thought…I guess it wouldn't hurt to take a shower in the morning just this once. It's been such a long day that I'd probably fall asleep in the shower and hit my head or something. It'll probably help me wake up a little better too."_

And with those thoughts, Ayaka unbuttons her white shirt and tosses it along with her tie towards her clothes hamper before collapsing in her bed, decked out in the rather unorthodox night attire of bra, skirt, and socks. The girl thinks about how strange it is to have that combination as sleep attire, but still doesn't really care. After all, it isn't like anybody is going to see her…

…Or so she thought. Just as Ayaka starts to nod off, she feels something warm lying next to her. Just as the girl is about to jump up and get to the light switch to find out what exactly it is, she feels an arm drape over her neck, leaving a hand dangling dangerously close to her chest. Now acting purely on impulse, Ayaka clamps down on the arm and with a shout, throws the arm and it's owner across the room and into the bathroom door in a loud crash. Sure enough, a couple of seconds after the sound, Chizuru and Natsumi storm into the room and flip on the light switch to find a scared/angry Ayaka brandishing a pillow and a nearly unconscious Clyde propped upside down against the now cracked bathroom door.

"Clyde-san! What in the world were you trying to do!?"

The aforementioned boy looks up in a daze at the blonde girl, his eyes trying to adjust to the light. Grimacing in pain, he opens his mouth.

"Trying to sleep. What did you think I was trying to do?"

"Trying to sleep!? In my bed!? With me!?"

"To be fair, I was there first." Clyde trails off as he notices Ayaka's attire, but quickly snaps out of it as a thought crosses his mind. "What, these two didn't tell you?"

"We tried to, Clyde-san." Natsumi pouts as she shakes her head in disbelief. "Ayaka said it wasn't important."

"You two were in on this!?" Ayaka fixes her glare over to Chizuru and Natsumi, causing the flatter chested girl to yelp and the more endowed one to chuckle. "I'm not seeing the humor in this, Chizuru!"

"Calm down, Ayaka. You should be a little nicer to our new roommate."

The girl's comment is met with an arched eyebrow and a look of horror as Ayaka glances back and forth at the dazed Clyde and the smiling Chizuru, hoping that the girl is playing a prank on her. Hope vanishes from the girl's face as Clyde manages to get to his feet and hand the blonde the letter he was looking at previously. Sitting down on the bed as she opens it, Ayaka soon finds herself shaking her head in frustration as she reads.

_Attn: Murakami, Natsumi; Naba, Chizuru; & Yukihiro, Ayaka_

_Due to our current lack of rooming accommodations and Ms. Yukihiro's eagerness to help out newcomers as she volunteered to constantly with Negi-sensei, I am happy to announce that as of today, Clyde Metro will be your new roommate. I trust that you three young ladies will be a good influence on Metro-san during his stay here at Mahora._

_Respectfully yours,_

_Headmaster Konoe_

"Eagerness to help out newcomers?" Ayaka pauses in both slight shock and anger before uttering her next words. Chizuru and Natsumi look at each other and shrug, wondering if Ayaka realizes that the Headmaster isn't here to listen to her protests. "There is a big difference between Negi-sensei and Clyde-san! Negi is so innocent, so pure…Clyde tried to sleep with me and take my innocence!"

"Take your innocence!? You're nuts!"

"_And pretty for that matter."_

"There was only one bed here, so put two and two together!"

"_Why in the world she has to be lecturing me in a bra and skirt is beyond me. Is this somebody's idea of a joke?"_

"And like I said, I was there first."

"_Finders keepers, you pretty little thing. Besides, haven't you ever heard of bunk beds? Everyone else has them."_

"Maybe she was wanting to cuddle with me. Yeah, that's prob…"

Clyde finds his spiel abruptly ending after his last comment as a swift backhand from Ayaka sends him sprawling to the floor. As the boy staggers to his feet, he tilts his head to the right, narrowly avoiding the red heel that the incensed blonde just threw his way. Chuckling nervously despite the red hand mark on his cheek, Clyde quickly steps out of the room and mutters something about sleeping on the couch before closing the door behind him, leaving his other roommates behind to hopefully diffuse the situation. The blonde adjusts his head on the armrest of the couch and slowly dozes off, despite the lights glaring in his face from the ceiling fan. As the boy nods off to sleep, one final thought enters his head.

"_Damnit, Clyde. You really need to learn to separate your thoughts and speech better. That heel she tossed at me took out a good little chunk out of her wall. Probably gonna get blamed for that…"_

Clyde shakes his head slightly and lets out a small sigh as sleep grows nearer and nearer to him. Finally, the sandman claims his victim as the young boy is snoring softly.

* * *

"Sir, are you sure that was a good idea?" 

A weary looking Headmaster Konoe looks up from the paperwork on his desk to see a smiling Shizuna looking at him.

"About putting Clyde in that room, I'm assuming?" Shizuna nods in confirmation. "Well, that was probably the best place to put him. Asakura and Hasegawa both have their own rooms, but I'm not about to deal with the backlash that would come from a single teenage boy and girl sharing a room. Akashi and Izumi both know Clyde's little secret, but what fun would it be for him to keep his secret from just one person?"

Konoe chuckles slightly before continuing.

"You see, I want to challenge Metro-san. I want to make sure that he is going to have a difficult time keeping his magic under wraps. Having three roomates will do that...plus them having the largest room in that dormatory helps out as well. Anywhere else and they would probably be crammed like sardines."

Shizuna chuckles slightly as she walks towards the door.

"I see. It should make for an interesting year for Metro-san...and for the rest of the class for that matter. Try not to stay up too late with those reports. Goodnight, Headmaster."

"Goodnight, Shizuna."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Holy heck, it has been WAY too long, hasn't it? First off, sorry for the insane delay, as three months is pretty bad. Secondly, sorry if this chapter isn't the best in the world, especially after so long. It's always fun to start setting the stage for a new story arc, eh? But nonetheless, I am happy to announce that I'm back for awhile now (pauses for cheers, jeers). I decided to take a bit of time off after the first few chapters to recharge the old batteries and try to get my ideas for the next arc organized all nice and neatly. I think that all of you Fallout fans (yes, all five of you), will be pleased with what I have in store for our favorite little teacher and his high amped class. As usual, kudos for all of the hits and the reviews that have been chucked my way, and aces again to DarkDragonDave for the proofreading job. Also as usual, questions, comments, complaints, flat out flames? Don't be afraid to send those bad boys to me in way of a review (pretty please?), PM, e-mail, or AIM at Jack Midnight 04. Vacation was nice, yes, but I'm glad to be back churning out the chapters. See you ladies and gentlemen in the near future with Chapter 9! 

Later days,

_-Midnight_


	9. Alchemy Madness Part 1: A Sleepy Mistake

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas and my OC Clyde Metro, so please don't sue. The college might get upset with me if I were to suddenly stop paying my loan due to lack of funds.

**Author's Notes:** First and foremost, congratulations to GaleBread for catching my intentional little plot hole. Glad to see somebody finally called me on it. (Throws confetti and blows noise maker) As the winner of this little unannounced contest, GaleBread will get to help shape a bit of the rest of Fallout. What part, you may ask? You'll find out in a couple of chapters. Also props to DarkDragonDave for another proofreading job. Speaking of which, if you haven't read his "Bard Moon Rising" story, give it a shot as it's a pretty interesting read so far. Oh, one thing before you get to the story. Some characters may seem a little OOC. There's a reason for it, so don't stop reading halfway through because you think someone is acting strange. Enjoy!

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 9**

"Alright…piece of cake…a little more…whoa!"

Clyde quietly yelps out in shock as the beaker he is currently working on starts to fizz over. Looking around in a frenzy, the blonde quickly grabs an arm cover from the nearby couch and uses it to stop the pale blue liquid from making a mess on the desk he is working at. Shaking his head in disappointment, the blonde looks up at the clock above his head and notes the time: 2:47 a.m.

"_Man, this would be so much easier if the Headmaster would have just given me my own damn room. How in the hell are they expecting me to do any of this research if I have to go all cloak and dagger? Could always do it in the clock tower, but the candlelight coming from an abandoned building would probably attract more attention than I want."_

Clyde sighs and looks up at the clock yet again, seeing that only a single tick has gone by on the minute hand. Cursing quietly to himself, Clyde dives back into his thoughts again.

"_And how exactly are they hoping to keep up the charade of me being an honor exchange student if my grades tank? Knowing this curriculum or not, it's still tough if you're running on two freaking hours of sleep. Oh well, I guess I should be thankful that they decided to not turn me into an ermine….speaking of which, I guess I'd better keep moving along with this little chore. Definitely would not be good if they decided to change their minds…"_

And with that last thought, Clyde takes a quick glance about the room, making sure that none of his roommates are up and watching before grabbing a vial and emptying the liquid inside into a large beaker. A fatigued smile pops up on the blonde youth's face as his latest concoction starts to dimly glow in it's bottle. Chuckling quietly to himself, Clyde sets the beaker to the side for now and starts mixing more vials, whispering a compliment to himself as a sort of pick-me-up.

"Good job…only a couple more to go…"

* * *

"Good morning class!" 

"Good morning, Negi-sensei!"

"Well, I'm glad to see all of you awake and alert…Naba-san, would you please wake up Clyde?"

Chizuru chuckles and gently elbows the half-asleep blonde in the shoulder, causing him to nearly leap out of his chair in reaction. Clyde shakes the cobwebs out as the majority of the class laughs at the youth's misfortune. Negi for his part joins in with a slight chuckle before chastising the boy.

"Really, Clyde-san, you should get more sleep at night."

"_I could get more sleep if somebody wouldn't have gotten me in trouble and made me do the academy's experiments!"_

Negi blinks in confusion a couple of times before remembering his pactio with Clyde. Shaking his head in frustration due to his forgetfulness, Negi quickly mind texts the blonde back.

"_You were the one that got yourself in trouble! I volunteered to accept punishment, remember?"_

"_Yeah, very nice of you, but I didn't think you did anything wrong. You could show me a little slack here, "sensei."_

"_You're supposed to be playing the role of an exchange student, Clyde. Don't get mad at me if I have to treat you like a miscreant."_

"_Miscreant!? I'll show you miscreant! You want a problem child in your class…"_

And as quickly as Clyde and Negi's mental rant begins, it ends as Ayaka gets up from her seat and slaps Clyde.

"Stop glaring at Negi-sensei! Show him some respect, Clyde-san!"

Clyde grimaces in pain as he looks up at Ayaka through his teary eyes, the red imprint of a hand right on his cheek. Too fatigued to cause a big scene by arguing or reacting, the boy opts to mutter a nearly inaudible "sorry" and settles back down in his desk.

"Nice…an iron fist in a velvet glove…"

"Hmm…did you say something, Clyde-san?

"Not at all. Go ahead and continue, Mr. Spring…er, Negi-sensei."

Negi smiles and nods before continuing with class. The young teacher turns to the board where the ideas for the Cultural Festival still remain, grimacing in disgust at the majority of the "suggestions." Shaking his head, Negi turns back to face the class, which for a pleasant change in pace, are silent.

"Alright, then. It seems that due to most of our choices being inappropriate, that we have no choice but to go with the Romeo and Juliet idea."

Negi pauses for a few seconds, waiting for the protests that the boy knew would come.

"Inappropriate? Kissing booth would have been kind of cool!"

"It would have raised money!"

"What in the hell was wrong with Cosplay Contest!?"

"Geez, I don't think I've ever seen Chisame get so worked up over something."

"I'm not worked up! I was…curious. Yeah. Just curious."

Negi sighs quietly as the class continues on their tangent. Muttering quietly to himself for the second time in as many days, the windows find themselves letting in a gust of wind. As the girls all scramble to save loose papers, Clyde's eyebrow arches up at the spectacle. Quickly standing up, Clyde addresses the pint sized teacher.

"Wow, Negi-sensei! I had no idea that it was so windy here in Japan! I really do wonder how it is so windy! It really is a mystery to me!"

Negi chuckles nervously to himself at the older boy's statement, seeing the boy was clearheaded enough today to put two and two together. Trying not to blow his cover, Negi quickly whips up a lame excuse.

"Yeah…it is a mystery. Heh…maybe it's a pressure cell or something…I'm an English teacher, Clyde-san, not a weatherman. Now then, if we're ready to continue…I personally think that a play would be a terrific idea. Naturally, we'll need a director…yes, Naba-san?"

The brown haired beauty chuckles as she lowers her hand.

"Negi-sensei, how about Natsumi? She knows the most about theatre in this class."

Natsumi for her part just yelps in shock.

"Oh, no, no, no. You guys don't want me to direct. I don't know that much about it…really!"

"Now, now. Don't be so bashful, Natsumi. You'd be perfect for the job. You need to learn to come out of your shell."

"Chizu-ne…I'm not a director though. I'm an actor."

"I think you would do just fine."

Natsumi turns her glance from Chizuru up to the smiling boy teacher that was the source of the more recent comment. "You're the best person I can think of for the job. Please?"

The redhead rubs her hands through her hair, a look of worry on her face. Finally, after what seems like an eternity to the girl, Natsumi looks up to the still smiling teacher and flashes one of her own.

"Right! I can do this! I won't let you down, Negi-sensei! I remember how most of the story goes since Takahata-sensei had us read it last year…besides, directing can't be that hard…right?"

Negi beams as he begins writing on a piece of paper.

"Director…Natsumi…Murakami…there! Now that we have that done, I guess we should pick a male lead…and seeing as how Clyde is the only male in this class, I guess he's got the job."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Clyde scoffs and shakes his head. "No offense, but I really don't think I should have the lead. I'm the new kid on the block, y'know. Why don't you do it?"

"Oh, I couldn't possibly…"

"Nonsense! Let's have a vote! Whoever thinks I should be Romeo, raise your hand."

Everybody looks around the room, seeing only five or six hands in the air, the majority of the raised hand owners winking at Clyde. Chuckling nervously, the youth presses onwards. "Negi?"

The class takes another glance around, seeing most of the unraised hands in the air now, with Chisame, Evangeline, and Chachamaru not being bothered with casting a vote either way. Negi lets out his all too familiar nervous chuckle and writes his name down on the sheet.

"I'm Romeo…swell…just terrific…now for the rest of the cast…"

"Negi-sensei, as your class representative, I will gladly accept the responsibility of taking the lead female role."

"Wait a minute!" Makie quickly gets up from her seat and walks towards the now slightly irked rep. "I remember the end of that play too! You just want to get a smooch from Negi-kun!"

Ayaka slightly blushes at the accusation before offering up her rebuttal.

"No, that isn't the case at all…not that I would mind kissing Negi-sensei…I'm nominating myself because I don't want our play to be screwed up."

"Well, she is used to acting." Asuna scoffs. "She does it everyday with that good doer act."

"It isn't an act. Maybe acting like a good doer is something you should do though, Asuna!"

"_Negi, use that cufflink you got there and cause a breeze or something. I'm not going to get hit again by breaking them up."_

"_Wha?" _Negi arches an eyebrow at the grumbling blonde who appears to be trying his best to tune out the argument between the two females. _"How did you know about my cufflink?"_

"_Because you just gave it away. It was a guess. Knew you had to be making magic somehow. Talk about lucky!"_

After Clyde's last pactio transmitted message to the pint sized teacher and after said teacher facefaults, he breaks out in laughter, causing the class to look at him strangely. Ayaka and Asuna are able to cease their verbal fire long enough to look at their hyena of a classmate before glancing at each other again.

"Is he okay?"

"You'd know better than I would. He's your roommate now, isn't he?"

"Not by choice."

"Ahem."

The two girls abruptly stop in their conversation as the young teacher clears his throat. Clyde's laughter subsides as well as he receives another Chizuru elbow for his troubles, snapping him out of his chuckling stupor. Negi, with the order restored in his classroom for the time being, decides to press on with the current subject.

"Seeing as how we might have some difficulties selecting certain parts, I think the best thing would be to draw out of a hat again." Negi smirks as he pulls Konoka's beret out of his desk drawer, the ermine stowaway from the day before gone like a thief in the night. After a few moments, Negi gets everyone's name, sans Natsumi's and his own into the hat.

"OK…I guess we'll go for the role of Juliet first…"

A mixed look of happiness and dread washes across Negi's face as he reaches in to see who his leading lady will be. The boy takes out a slip of paper and the look on his face changes to complete dread as he reads off the name.

"…It looks like our Juliet is…Clyde."

The announcement is met with waves of laughter as Clyde shakes his head violently in protest. The blonde quickly stands up and walks up to the teacher's desk.

"Hey, not to be a spoilsport or anything…but there's no way that's going to happen. Thirty girls to pick from and I end up having to dress in drag? I'm thinking…no. Matter of fact, I'm new here. So why not just have me be stage manager or something? I wouldn't lose any sleep. Isn't like I'm going to have family here to watch me perform, right? You should also know that I get really nervous in front of…"

"Stage manager it is." Negi nods in agreement, hoping to be able to end the chain of excuses that Clyde has been firing off. "With that settled, we still need a Juliet…looks like…Haruna.

"Yeah, way to go, Paru!"

"Dang…I wanted to be Juliet."

"Oh, quit pouting. It isn't the end of the world, y'know?"

Haruna for her part chuckles for a few moments before speaking.

"Negi-sensei, don't you think it would be better for me to work on sets for the play? I am the artist you know…although I do know who we could use for Juliet."

The girl adjusts her glasses before pointing a finger at a desk behind her.

"How about Nodoka? I'm sure she's read that play plenty of times! I bet she knows the part in and out!"

The purple haired librarian lets out a slight yelp in terror at the mere suggestion of sharing the lead with Negi, all too well knowing the play and the relationship between it's namesake characters. Before Nodoka has a chance to protest, Yue stands up from her desk and offers her two cents.

"Negi-sensei, I think that would be a good idea. I'm sure Nodoka won't have any problems with taking the lead, right?"

Nodoka slightly squirms in her seat at Yue's last word, which is emphasized with a glare in the purple haired girl's direction. Taking a deep breath and taking a few moments to compose herself, Nodoka stands up, a slight smile on her face.

"All right. I'll do it!"

The acceptance of the role is met with cheers from the vast majority of the class, with a few girls sitting in their desks with slight scowls in disappointment; Makie and Ayaka in particular. Negi smiles and nods as he writes the name in and proceeds on down the cast list.

"Glad we have that settled. Now, for the next role…"

* * *

"Hey, not to be ungrateful or rude, but did Ayaka really have to do this?" 

A very sleepy Clyde sits up slightly from the couch that he is currently resting on in the dorm. Chizuru chuckles from across the room as the boy shoots a half-awake glance at her.

"Now, now. It isn't that bad, Clyde. You should be happy. Just consider it a chance for you to meet and get along with the rest of the class. Besides, we do need to start planning for the play, so that's why Ayaka suggested everybody meeting here."

"That, or she's trying to score brownie points with the teacher."

Chizuru responds with a smile and a chuckle at the blonde's theory. His question answered, Clyde flips the brown haired beauty a thumbs up before lying back down on the couch. His trip into slumber land is cut very quickly, however, as he feels his legs being yanked off the couch. Awaking in shock, Clyde's upper half finds it's way off the couch as well, causing the boy to crash to the floor. Looking up in anger, Clyde's angry look dissolves away as he is met with one from the blonde girl standing over him.

"Sorry Clyde, but no shoes on the couch. Didn't your parents ever teach you manners?"

"Sorry. I'm just a little tired."

"Well don't take it out on the couch with your shoes, alright?" Ayaka's expression brightens as a knock is heard at the door. "He…They're here!"

And with that, Ayaka quickly makes her way over to the door and mistakenly opens it with her standing directly in front, getting trampled by twenty-some people as they flood into the living room. Clyde can't help but to let out a chuckle before helping up the roommate/floor mat that ruined his nap.

"Yawn…You OK?"

"Yeah, I think so. Thank you Clyde-sa…"

Ayaka trails off as she notices a smiling Negi standing behind Clyde in the doorway, chuckling and waving at the unfortunate girl. Without wasting a second, Ayaka quickly pushes Clyde into the couch, sending him crashing over the top of it and onto the trio of girls now sitting on it. After quickly rolling to the floor and apologizing to the cheerleader trio that has broken his fall, the blonde opts to just sit down against a wall for the little class meeting.

"Wow, you sure like making physical contact with cute girls, don'tcha?"

Clyde arches an eyebrow and looks up from the ground to see a snickering Asakura. Shaking his head and letting out another small yawn, the boy only lets out a half hearted "meh," causing the redheaded reporter to pout.

"Oh, you're no fun! How am I supposed to get my laughs from you if you're too tired to even put up a protest? Wait…didn't you say you had some kind of special assignment or something? You know, for the…" Asakura quickly surveys the room to make sure that nobody is near enough to hear her whisper. "…for the magic academy thing?"

The girl's question is answered by a small nod and a thumbs up.

"Man, that's gotta suck for you. Cheer up though, Clyde-kun. It could always be worse, right?"

"Sorry to interrupt…"

Both Asakura and Clyde look behind the reporter to see a cheerful looking Makie raising her hand as if to get the duo's attention.

"…um, is it OK if I grab something to drink? You live here so you can give the thumbs up, right?"

"Yeah, sure." Clyde lets out yet another yawn before continuing. "Drinks are in the fridge. Help yourself…Makie, right?"

"Hey, you remembered!" A grin breaks out on the gymnast's face, as well as a slight blush. "Since they were being quiet, maybe you could tell me. Which one are you dating? Ako or Yuna? There had to be a reason that you were all out together for the whole day a couple days ago."

"Neither…yawn…" Clyde thinks of putting up more of a defensive argument, but is too tired to do so.

"Really? That's nice to know." Makie lets out a giggle before going to the refrigerator. "Talk to you later, Clyde-kun!"

Clyde raises a half awake eyebrow as the high spirited gymnast runs off to the kitchen as Asakura lets out a laugh.

"You're getting pretty popular, Clyde. How about getting yourself a girlfriend so I can get some gossip?

"…Whatever. You want to hand me that pillow on the end of the couch?"

Asakura haphazardly grabs said pillow and tosses it at the boy's face. Clyde quickly puts the sleeping aid between his head and the wall, causing the paparazzo's smirk to become a frown.

"You are so damn boring. Wake up a little, man."

The duo's attention, as well as that of everyone else turns to the kitchen following the sound of glass breaking and a certain pink haired girl saying "oopsie." Ayaka turns from the group of students that she was talking with and glares at the chuckling Makie, already scouring the kitchen for paper towels.

"Makie! What are you doing in there!"

"It looks like she's dropping stuff, Rep."

"I can see that, Sakurako!"

"Hey, is that soda?"

"Awesome! I want one!"

"Us too!"

"Thank you for the generosity, Rep."

"But…I…ugh." Ayaka sighs in defeat, obviously none too pleased with having to now make a trip to the grocery store in the near future. After turning due to a tap on her shoulder, the rep's demeanor takes a 180 as she comes face to face with a smiling Negi.

"That is very generous of you, Ayaka-san."

"I do what I can, Negi-sensei." Ayaka blushes ever so slightly as she lets out a giggle. "After all, a class rep has to take care of her classmates."

"Indeed." Negi nods before continuing on. "Anyways, I was just curious. When is the cultural festival anyways?"

"When is the cultural festival?" Ayaka blinks in confusion a couple of times before responding. "That would be in a week and a half, Negi-sensei."

"Right, a week and a half." After the information settles in, Negi's eyes nearly pop out of his skull. "A week and a half!? We have to be ready in a week and a half!?"

"Nobody told you?" Ayaka ponders, already able to deduct the answer from the boy's demeanor. The blonde, now in a state of saddened shock continues on. "Nobody…told…him. My responsibility…I failed…"

"It's not your fault, Ayaka-san. I should've paid better attention myself."

"I'm the class representative…it's my duty…I failed Negi-sensei…"

Before Negi has a chance to say anything to the stunned girl, Ayaka quickly stands up and runs crying to her room, still apologizing to the stunned teacher as she goes. Negi blinks a couple of times and goes to follow the now depressed rep, but promptly runs right into Chizuru a few steps later.

"Don't worry, Negi-sensei. Natsumi and I will take care of this."

"But Naba-san…"

"It'll be fine." Chizuru's smile and confidant manner makes the young teacher feel slightly at ease. "We'll take care of her."

"Alright then…I guess we'll end the meeting for now…see you all later."

Natsumi opens the door and sees the class out, trying her hardest to not be distracted by the snoring that her newest roommate is currently doing. Chizuru smiles and nods as she cleans up Makie's unintentional mess, grabbing a soda for herself before going to cheer up Ayaka.

"What a night…" Natsumi sighs as she waves to the last of her classmates and shuts the door, coming to an abrupt stop a few inches shy of Clyde's protruding legs. Chuckling slightly, the redhead makes her way over to the closet and grabs a blanket, tossing it over the fatigued blonde. Her task complete, Natsumi follows Chizuru's lead and goes to try to cheer up Ayaka.

"_What a mess of a day…we didn't get a single thing done, did we?"_ Natsumi ponders to herself for a few moments before brightening up and continuing on her way.

"_Gotta be positive. It isn't like tomorrow can be any worse, right? Everything will be so much better tomorrow…I hope."_

* * *

Natsumi lets out a yawn and stretches as she climbs out of her bed, eager to see if her thought the night before would prove true. The half awake girl puts on her slippers and robe before stumbling out of the bedroom, Ayaka still cooped up in her room. Natsumi lets out a small sigh as she passes the door. Her and Chizuru had managed to get Ayaka calm the night before, but she was still not in the best of moods. Chizuru told Natsumi that the blonde girl would be fine with a good night sleep to clear her head, so the redhead just keeps walking past the door, not wanting to disturb her slightly depressed roommate. Scanning the living room, Natsumi notices that Clyde is already absent, as proven by the pillow and folded blanked lying on the arm of the couch. The smell of bacon and eggs takes Natsumi away from her quick glance at the room and leads her into the kitchen, where a smiling Chizuru is already working away on breakfast. 

"Good morning, Chizu-ne!" Natsumi smiles to the brown haired girl as she sits down at the dining room table. "What all are we having?"

"Oh, a little bit of everything…" Chizuru gives the actress a smile of her own before sitting down. Natsumi's smile slowly evaporates though as she notices that Chizuru is still smiling and hasn't taken her glance off of her for the last couple of minutes.

"Um…what's wrong, Chizu-ne?" Natsumi gasps in shock before feeling her face. "Is it a pimple? Do I have something on my face? What are you looking at?"

"No, no…nothing of the sort." Chizuru dismisses the girl's worries with a wave of her hand before continuing. "It's just that…your freckles…"

"Wha…?" Natsumi tilts her head in confusion at the girl's statement. "What about them?"

"It's just that I wish I had them. Look at how well they compliment your face! All I have is a dumb beauty mark…just a single one! And your hair…"

Chizuru lets out a small giggle as she runs her hand through Natsumi's red locks. Natsumi for her part is frozen in confusion.

"It is sooo short! I wish I had shorter hair like you. Do you know how much I have to spend on shampoo each month? It's terrible!"

Natsumi thinks of saying something to her stranger-than-usual friend, but finds herself only able to blink in confusion and shock as Chizuru's hands have now found their way to the front of her robe.

"And your chest…why can't I have ones like you? These things always get in the way and they're so heavy!" Chizuru's hands quickly retract before bringing her arms around Natsumi in an embrace. "I am just so jealous of you! Why do you get to have all the luck of cute freckles, short and easy to wash hair, and a compact bosom? It just isn't fair!"

"I…I…I think I'm going to skip breakfast today. As director, I got to get to school pretty early. Bye!"

The most amazing part of the sentence for every witness was the fact that in that time, Natsumi was able to break free, get changed, and get out the door before uttering "bye." As the door closes in front of her, Chizuru puts her face in her hands and pouts over the dining table.

"I wish I could move that fast."

* * *

"Hey Clyde, do you have a minute?" 

The mentioned blonde turns his attention up from his desk to see a worried Natsumi. The boy shrugs and nods to the redhead.

"I just wanted to ask you before Chizu-ne gets here…was she acting odd when you left this morning?"

"Acting odd?" Clyde strokes his chin for a few moments before coming up with an answer. "Well, she did say she was jealous about my legs. Something about how I'm lucky that I don't have to shave them? That qualifies as odd, right?"

"Yeah, I'd say so. Do you want to know what happened to me this morning?"

Clyde shrugs again and Natsumi walks a little closer to the boy, whispering in his ear. The mage's face runs the entire gamut of emotions as the redhead tells of her ordeal, from an arched eyebrow, to a slight smirk, to eyes and mouth opening wide in shock. As Natsumi finishes, Clyde blinks a couple of times and waits for the information to settle in.

"You think she has a fever or something, Natsumi?"

As soon as the words leave Clyde's mouth, the attention of everybody in the classroom turns to the commotion at the doorway, as a frustrated Ayaka walks into the room, hindered in her journey by the well endowed girl hanging on her neck.

"Chizuru! What's with you? Lemme go, already!"

"You look so cute in a tie! Why can't I look cute when I wear a tie? And why can't I have green eyes? Green's my favorite color!"

All the class finds themselves able to do is sweat drop at the spectacle in front of them. Evangeline watches on from the back of the room for a few seconds before letting out a scoff and opening up a newspaper. Negi for his part isn't sure what to make of the display, but speaks up anyways.

"Um…excuse me…Naba-san? Are you feeling alright?"

At the sound of the small teacher's voice, Chizuru releases her grip on Ayaka and turns her attention to Negi. An awkward silence ensues as the girl stares at Negi for a few moments before grabbing onto the back of his hair.

"Ooh, I love your ponytail! I want a cute little ponytail like that!"

"She could cut her hair short…" Chisame mutters to herself, obviously just as annoyed as Evangeline is with the strange display. "Or better yet, she could shut up so we can get this day of torment started and out of the way…eh!"

The net idol finds herself letting out a yelp of shock as she finds herself face to face with the still smiling Chizuru.

"You know, I have always liked those glasses. I wish I had glasses like that!"

"Go stare at the sun or some…hey, what are you doing!?"

All Chisame can do is watch on in shock and anger as Chizuru takes the glasses off of her face and puts them on her own. Deciding enough is enough, Clyde hops up from his seat and goes to retrieve his deskmate.

"OK…let's go sit down, hon. That's good for today." Clyde lets out a nervous chuckle as he gives the glasses back to the fuming Chisame.

"Eh, sorry about that? You know, you do look better without the glasses though. Have you ever thought about contact lenses?"

A low growl from the peeved girl is all it takes for Clyde to drop the subject and hastily make his way back to his desk with Chizuru in tow. Negi shoots a confused look over to Clyde, who just shrugs in equal confusion as Chizuru runs her hand through his hair, this time complaining that her hair isn't as shiny. Deciding that this is probably the calmest he's going to get the class, Negi decides to push onwards.

"Alright then…Haruna-san, have you decided what you are going to do with the sets yet?"

"Already covered, sensei!" Haruna stands up and flips the teacher a pair of thumbs. "And thanks to Lingshen and Satomi, we should be able to have the sets done tonight. Technology rocks!"

The beaming manga girl hops up from her desk and runs around the room, giving both of the scientific geniuses high fives before sitting down. Negi lets out a chuckle at the spectacle before continuing on.

"Terrific! That leaves us time to get our lines down. Now then, let's start with our lead. Nodoka, are you feeling comfortable with the part?"

"Yeah, fine. Now buzz off."

Negi lets out a chuckle, but the smile from his face quickly disappears as he notices that the purple haired librarian has a scowl etched on her face.

"Um…are you okay, Nodoka?"

"Terrific. Leave me alone."

Concerned for the girl as she is definitely acting strangely compared to usual, Negi leaves his desk and walks to the irked girl.

"Nodoka, are you sure that you're fine? I've never seen you act like this."

"Shut up, Negi!"

Following that trio of words, Negi finds himself lying on the ground several feet away as a result of a Nodoka backhand. After a few moments of hushed silence, Ayaka gets up from her seat and storms back towards Nodoka.

"Bookworm-chan! Why did you do that to Negi-sensei!?"

"You want some of this, blondie!? I can backhand you the hell out of my way too!"

All Ayaka is able to do is stand there stunned. Normally used to having Asuna yelling at her about various things, the blonde isn't quite sure how to react. Cautiously taking a few slow steps backwards, the rep turns her attention to the dazed teacher who is struggling to his feet.

"Are you alright, Negi-sensei!?"

"…Yes, I think so…thank you, Ayaka."

"You poor thing!" Without warning, Negi finds himself wrapped in an embrace with his head stuck between a soft place…well, two soft places. Clyde's raised eyebrow seems to be stuck in place as he tries to put two and two together. As the boy runs through his thoughts, he feels himself being picked up out of his chair. Abruptly turning about, he sees a smiling Sakurako staring at him.

"Clyde-kun…I was thinking…"

"That's good, I suppose." Clyde blinks a couple of times at the blushing girl before continuing. "Thinking about what?"

"Well, do you like cheerleaders?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Really?" Sakurako lets out a small giggle as she inches closer towards Clyde. "What about lacrosse?"

"Um…It's alright."

Clyde tries to take a few steps back, but Sakurako promptly stops him by grabbing his right arm and wrapping it around her waist. Clyde starts chuckling nervously and sweat drops, not quite sure of what to make of the girl's advances.

"You don't have a girlfriend yet, right?" Sakurako's blushing becomes ever more noticeable by the second as she finally wraps her arms around the boy's neck. "Don't worry, Clyde-kun. I'll be your girlfriend!"

"Be his girlfriend!?" Sakurako's idea for Clyde does a very good job of drawing attention away from the still dazed Negi. Quickly getting up from her seat, Misa storms over to her beaming friend and the very confused Clyde, grabbing onto the girl's hair and pulling her over to Madoka's desk.

"What the heck!? I know Clyde is cute and all, but you can't be so forward!" Misa shakes her head briefly before continuing her chastising of Sakurako. "You see, the thing about boys is…"

"Oh, come on, Misa. I want a boyfriend. You have a boyfriend. What's the problem?"

"The problem is you don't know him! Dating takes time, Sakurako…hey! Are you even listening to me!?"

Misa grumbles in frustration as the lectured girl has already made her way back over to Clyde's desk and has him currently locked in a bear hug. Misa is able to drag her cheering compatriot away for a second time, with the dragged girl promising to call him as she is brought back to Madoka's desk.

"Madoka, you want to help me out a little bit here?"

"Eh…maybe later…I think I'm gonna take a nap."

"Take a nap? Don't be so lazy, Kugumi!"

Misa smirks, knowing that she will get a reaction from the third cheerleader over the makeshift nickname. The purple haired cheerleader is out of luck though, as Madoka just lets out a yawn and a very quiet "whatever." Before anything else in the classroom can happen, the bell rings, bringing an end to the more than usual chaos of 3-A.

"Umm…everybody study your lines, I guess…" Negi sighs as he watches the class leave, notables being Clyde sprinting from the room, Sakurako giving chase, Nodoka punching a hole in the wall next to the door before storming out, Misa yelling at Sakurako to knock it off while dragging a now asleep Madoka, and Chizuru following Kaede, pouting about how she wishes she was taller. The boy shakes his head in frustration and wonders if the strange behavior is some kind of a test for him, or if the school has a gas leak somewhere.

* * *

Clyde lets out a sigh of relief as he slams the door of his dorm shut behind him. After locking the door and making sure that there was no way the crazed cheerleader can get in, the blonde plops himself down on the couch and tries to sort out the chaos. 

"_What in the hell was all of that stuff about today? I know that Negi's class is a little eccentric, but I didn't think they were that bad…Wait a minute…maybe it's some kind of test for me and Negi? Nah, it couldn't be. The mages council wouldn't be bold enough to make it obvious…would they? Gas leak? Probably not…"_

"Ah, damnit!" Clyde growls in frustration as he stands up and runs his hands through his hair. "There's gotta be a reason. That's alright, I'll just grab a soda and get back to brain…"

Clyde freezes mid word as he thinks about the night before, vaguely remembering giving the green light to the class for some beverage refreshment. Quickly rushing over to the fridge, Clyde throws it open and immediately digs towards the back. After a frantic search, Clyde slowly backs away from the refrigerator with a worried look on his face.

"Oh crap…"

Whistling nervously to himself, the blonde pulls out his pactio card with Negi and gives it a quick glance. After thinking on what he's going to say for a few moments, Clyde reaches out to his small comrade.

"_Negi, what are you up to?"_

"_Clyde? I should ask you the same question. You've been missing since class ended."_

"_Yeah, I know. How's the face feeling?"_

"_I think I'm fine. I'm not sure what happened though."_

"_Funny you should mention that. I think I might know what happened…"_

"_Really? What's that?"_

"_I'm at the dorms now. Grab the troops and meet me here as soon as you can…and try not to get too angry."_

_"Hey, Clyde?"_

_"Yeah, Negi?"_

"…_.Why is it that whenever you say that, something bad always follows?"_

* * *

**Author's Notes: The Encore!-** Yep, as if the chapter title wasn't enough of a hint, this little episode is going to be a multi parter. Sorry for the cliffhanger, but eh, life goes on. Something to look forward to somewhere down the road. Speaking of somewhere down the road, it is with mucho happiness that I announce a new story from the keyboard of Midnight Sleeper. Negima: Reset, set to grace very soon. As for updates on this new project, that depends on the fans. No, I'm not going to hold stories hostage or anything of the sort, but reader voting is going to play a major part in the storyline as far as how certain things happen, at least I'd like it to. What better way to give back to the readers than to let them help shape the next story? If anyone wants information, I put up a description in my profile. Anyways, kudos for all the reviews and if you like what you read, keep em coming. E-mail, AIM, you all know the drill. See you all later with Chapter 10 of Fallout and Chapter 1 of Reset!

-Midnight


	10. Alchemy Madness Part 2: What's a Vice?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. All I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. I'm poor. Yeah, I couldn't think of a smartass comment, so meh.

**Author's Notes:** And here we are again. Last time we left our merry crew, it seems that Clyde may have caused a nice little mess for our favorite little magic-less teacher. Not really much to do but get to it, right? Props as always to DarkDragonDave for the proofread job. Be sure to keep an eye out for his stuff because I know he's got a couple of stories that he's been working on that should be entertaining reads.

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 10**

"Ouch!"

Clyde grimaces in pain as he is hit over the head by a very irked Asuna, sending him flying over the couch in his dorm room. Setsuna and Yuna try their hardest to restrain the irritated girl, but are not having the best of luck in doing so. Ku Fei and Kaede watch on, both impressed with the raw strength Asuna is displaying. Asakura watches on as well, snapping photos to document the blonde boy's misfortune, while Ako acts on her nurse instincts and puts a cold compress to Clyde's head.

"What the hell were you thinking, Clyde!?" As Clyde lies on the ground still somewhat dazed, Asuna tosses a folder onto the boy's lap with the words 'Capital Vice Alchemical Experimentation' written on it. Naturally, when told exactly what the capital vices were, Asuna didn't respond in a positive manner…

"Being a Watcher or whatever the hell it is, you would think that you'd be a little more attentive towards what the hell you're doing!"

Clyde picks himself up and shakes his head, trying to come to before verbally defending himself. Flashing a smile to Ako, Clyde stands up and holds the cold compress to his head, the smile he just gave Ako changing to a scowl when he faces Asuna.

"First of all, it's 'Observer.' You can get that right, at least. Secondly, I was attentive towards what I was doing. I hid those bottles in the back of the refrigerator. I'm a little sorry I hadn't gotten the chance to put any kind of preservative into them, but I did the best I could to stash them away. I wasn't really planning on the class ransacking the fridge yesterday."

"You're the one that let them, you moron!" Asuna makes another lunge towards Clyde, stopped this time as Konoka wraps her arms around the redhead's legs, more or less incapacitating her for the time being. Sighing in defeat, Asuna temporarily concedes.

"You are so lucky that I can't get over to you right now."

"Hey, there is a silver lining to this cloud, Asuna."

"And what might that be!?"

"Well…" Clyde beams prior to his silver lining announcement. "That first bottle that the gymnast cutie broke one of the envy potions. So we only have…thirteen…yeah! Only thirteen to find and take

care of."

"Only thirteen!? Only thirteen!? Let me go, I'm going to kill this guy!"

"Oops, slightly fewer!" Clyde grins, putting a finger to his chin as he tries to recall all of the obvious victims thus far. "Well, I'm sure that Chizuru was the other envy…that girl that smacked Negi probably was a wrath…The really cute cheerleader…eh, she was fine."

"The hell she was!"

"Sheesh, Asuna…fine. The cute cheerleader unfortunately was attracted to me because of the lust potion rather than my rugged good looks and winning personality…stop chuckling, Kazumi! Um…the short haired cute cheerleader was probably sloth…"

"They have names, you baka!"

"Well, so sorry I haven't learned everybody's names yet! Gimme a break!"

"You know you two fight like you're married, right?"

"Not funny, Asakura!"

"Oh, c'mon. It was funny."

Negi sighs and shakes his head, knowing that the current argument isn't going to help matters any. Seeing as how Asuna has now directed her attention towards the snickering paparazzo, Negi makes his way into the kitchen and motions for Clyde to come over to him.

"So, how exactly are we going to fix this anyways?"

"About the only thing we can do is split up and look for anything suspicious." Clyde leans down and whispers quietly in Negi's ear, not wanting the irked redhead to hear the next part. "Like I said earlier, those potions weren't completely finished. About the only way to tell if somebody drank one is to just monitor them, see if they're acting different than usual. Some will take longer than others to kick in…at least, that's how it seems. Figured that I would take care of business after I got some shut eye, y'know?"

"So we just wait around to see if someone is acting odd? Isn't that a little dangerous?"

"You got any better ideas? Besides, we have a reporter that can handle damage control. It could be worse. Could have a monster invade the school or something, right?" Clyde laughs, causing Negi to shake his head, as usually when the blonde laughs in the middle of an idea, it bodes rather badly for all involved. "Come on, it'll be simple! We'll split up, you with some of the girls, me with some of the girls…what? It's so they can point out anything strange to me."

"That sounds cool! So what are we going to do?"

Both Negi and Clyde yelp in shock at Yuna's question, neither boy noticing the girls that snuck up on them. The vast majority of them have grins on their faces, save for Asuna, who has managed to calm down from her anger a couple of minutes ago. Clyde sighs in relief, happy that at least for the time being he is safe from an Asuna beating before walking back into the dorm's living room and grabbing several small perfume bottles from a desk drawer.

"Here we go. An antidote. Once we find somebody, we just give them a little spray and it's lights out, back to normal, no memory of what happened. Pretty awesome, huh?"

"Wha? So you mean we have to act like those pushy salespeople in the mall?" Yuna grimaces, not really looking forward to filling that particular role. "Man, that sucks!"

"Yuna, weren't you the one suggesting that Makie, Akira, and ourselves should've done that last summer for a part time job?"

Yuna face palms herself at Ako's question while the rest of the inhabitants of the room laugh.

"It was a moment of weakness! I needed to get new practice shoes and Daddy didn't have the money…" Yuna trails off as the snickering in the room increases in it's loudness. "…I mean, let's get going! Sooner we solve this, the better…right, Negi-kun?"

Negi looks up from a piece of paper and nods before going back to writing on it. Konoka sits down on the couch next to the teacher and watches on.

"Trying to figure out who's going where, Negi-kun?"

Negi nods as he puts the finishing touches on his list. Standing up and clearing his throat, the boy splits them off into teams.

"Alright then. Asuna, Konoka, Ku Fei, Setsuna, and Kaede will go with me. Sayo, Yuna, Asakura, and Ako, you all go with Clyde."

"Why do I get fewer people? This is a rip off! I think we should arm wrestle to see who gets the extra person…" Clyde gulps in fear as a very angry Asuna grabs the collar of his shirt and is only a few inches from his face. Chucking nervously, the frightened blonde grins and gives Asuna a thumbs up before continuing.

"…Er, teams are fine! Let's go, shall we?"

"Yes, I think that would be for the best. Asuna, could you please stop glaring at Clyde?" Negi looks around at the assembled groups before noticing that the ninja is strangely absent. "Um…where's Kaede-san at?"

"Just a minute, Negi-bozu!"

Both groups look in the direction of the kitchen to see most of the drawers open, with Kaede rummaging through the refrigerator. As the youths watch on in silence, the ninja pulls out one of the largest sandwiches that any of them have ever saw, well save for characters in a cartoon. In a manner of seconds, the girl is finished with her culinary masterpiece and goes towards the easiest to spot food; a fruit bowl sitting on the counter in front of her. As the girl continues to eat out of the bowl, skins, peels, cores, and all, Negi and Clyde both look at each other and nod.

"I think this would be an example of what we're looking for. Negi, go ahead."

"Um, okay."

Swiftly, the red headed prodigy sneaks into the kitchen and taps the hunger-riddled ninja on the shoulder. Kaede, now chewing on the plastic bowl, turns around only to be met with a blast from Negi's perfume bottle. Muttering incoherently, Kaede drops the bowl from her mouth and falls unconscious on top of the surprised teacher. Negi finds himself yelping in shock, first from how quickly the KO'ed ninja fell on top of him; secondly from what exactly his head wound up stuck in between. The boy blinks a couple of times before his face turns beet red from embarrassment before Clyde and Ku Fei rescue the boy from his predicament by putting the sleeping Kaede onto the couch. The majority of the youths in the room laugh at the boy's misfortune, much to his dismay, before the sound of a door opening attracts their attention. The group spins about to see a beaming Chizuru running into the room, clutching something to her chest the whole time.

"Negi-sensei! Just who I wanted to see!"

The now recovered Negi raises an eyebrow at the busty beauty before she storms over and locks him in her grip. In between rounds of gasping for air, Negi notices just what Chizuru has locked in her death grip besides himself; namely a certain ermine who has seemed to achieved nirvana at this point. After taking another large gasp for oxygen, Negi decides to press on, hoping that it will lead to his freedom.

"W…What is it…Naba-san?"

"Your pet weasel is so cute! He is just sooo adorable! I wish I had a pet weasel!"

"Heh…I'm all yours, toots."

Clyde and the rest of the girls face palm at Chamo's comment, Negi forgets about his lack of air and just remains in the embrace with a look of horror painted on his face, and Chizuru lets go of the stunned teacher long enough to look down at the ermine, who is now silently cussing to himself.

"It can talk! Wow, you're lucky, Negi-sensei! I want one just like it!"

"Sorry, Chizuru…"

The aforementioned girl turns to look behind her, beaming as she notices that it is Clyde holding a perfume bottle at her.

"Clyde, you shouldn't have! I love perfume! At least I have a boy that will buy me things. How many others can say that in our class?"

Clyde blushes and grumbles simultaneously as he sprays the girl in the face with the perfume bottle. Chizuru stumbles backwards and lands in the waiting arms of Setsuna and Ku Fei, who proceed to carry the knocked out girl to her room. Clyde lets out a small sigh and sits on the end of the couch, a very dazed Chamo following suit.

"I wish I didn't have to do that…dang."

"I wish you didn't have to do that either, chief…what are we talking about anyways? I think I have a right to know these things, especially when I'm given false hope."

"You should probably have Negi tell you, Chamo."

Clyde shakes his head sadly and lets out one final sad sigh before standing back up.

"Okay, I guess we should all get going. I doubt everybody that is affected will just show up on the doorstep. We can never have anything the easy way, can we?"

* * *

**Team Negi. Location: Library Island**

* * *

"I think we found our mark…" 

Negi finds himself trailing off as he and his team enter the library, which is in a state of disrepair at this time to say the least. Bookshelves have been toppled like dominoes, desks have been thrown like javelins, and lighting fixtures have been broken like…well, broken glass. As the group surveys the destruction, they hear a whimpering coming a few feet from them. Quickly and quietly moving, the group finds Haruna and Yue hiding underneath a bookshelf that is leaning against a wall.

"Paru! Yue!" Konoka slides under the bookshelf to comfort her fellow comrades, both of which are understandably shaken. "What in the world happened?"

"Konoka! It's just nuts! After class, we walked over here with Nodoka…well, followed her as she stormed here anyways. All Yue did was ask her to hand her a stack of books, when boom! She just went postal! And we thought it was horrible when she slapped the living crap out of Negi-sensei in class today! …Er, no offense Negi-sensei. But anyways, it was like something out of a horror book!" Haruna stops in her panic for a slight moment as a devilish grin crosses her face. "Although, this does give me an idea for my next manga. How about "The Lunatic Librarian?" Has a pretty sweet ring to it, doesn't it?"

Haruna is brought out of her brainstorming by an elbow from Yue. After silently arguing with the cowlick toting girl for a brief moment, Yue turns her attention to the rest of her classmates, picking up the figurative torch of worry and running with it.

"We're not really sure what to do, Negi-sensei. We've never seen Nodoka act like this."

"I do have to say, it is rather out of character for her." Negi agrees with the frightened girls, hoping that his nervous chuckle isn't noticeable. The chuckle is replaced soon after with a yelp of terror though, as Nodoka has discovered the hiding place of the group. Letting out a quick grunt, Nodoka effortlessly picks up the fallen bookshelf and tosses it to the side, leaving Negi and the girls looking on in a mixed state of shock and amazement. Negi gulps and takes a deep breath as he walks towards the irritated librarian.

"Um…how are you doing, Nodoka? I'm sorry that you seem to be having a bad day…aah!"

Negi finds himself cut off as Nodoka grips the front of Negi's suit and lifts him into the air with one hand.

"I thought I told you to shut up, Negi! I will bring the thunder down!"

As all the poor teacher can do at the moment is stay locked in the bookworm's grasp frozen in horror, Asuna decides to take the initiative to at least attempt to save her roommate.

"Bookworm, settle down already!"

"I'll settle you down, Asuna!"

Sure enough, the redhead finds herself unable to react in time to the lightning quick lunge for her throat and finds herself dangling in the air alongside Negi. As the girl tightens her grip on the duo's throats, both find themselves looking at their comrades for a little help, which comes in the form of Setsuna cracking Nodoka in the back of the head with the sheath of her sword. While it does drop Nodoka to a knee and causes her to release her death grip on Negi and Asuna, it does little else as the librarian is quickly up and is now shooting daggers at a shocked Setsuna.

"Sorry for having to do that, Miyazaki-san, but you didn't give me much choice."

"Oh, you're sorry?" Nodoka shoots the stern faced swordswoman a quizzical glance before her face erupts in an angry grin. "I'll give you something to really be sorry about!"

And with that, Nodoka finds herself taking a lunge at Setsuna, the raven haired girl barely able to get herself out of the way of the bookworm's tackle. Undeterred, Nodoka quickly picks herself up and comes storming back at Setsuna. The girl holds her sword in front of her as a means of defense, but it is unneeded as Ku Fei quickly cuts in between the two impromptu combatants and sprays her in the face with one of the group's perfume bottles. Nodoka manages to take a few sluggish steps forward after the blast, only to fall to the ground in a slumbering heap seconds later. As Negi and his team sigh in relief, Yue and Haruna exchange looks of confusion and are quick to voice their opinions.

"Holy crap! Of all things, she went down to a perfume bottle!? What the hell? Yue, is she allergic to perfume or something?"

"I'm pretty sure she isn't…" Yue trails off as she glares over at Negi, who yelps in surprise at the girl's stern look. "Come on. What's going on here?"

"Nothing! She's…um…she's probably sick! Yeah! I do hear that the flu bug is going around…"

"Negi-sensei. You don't expect us to believe that, do you?"

The small teacher gulps and excuses himself for a moment, taking the time to grab his pactio card with Clyde. Muttering to himself, Negi puts the card to his head and tries to contact the blonde.

"_Clyde? You there!?"_

"…_Negi! How's it going? Did ya have any luck?"_

"_Well, Nodoka is taken care of…"_

"_Awesome! The two cheerleaders are taken care of too! Well, add that to the tally and let's keep on mo…"_

"_Clyde! We have a problem here! What am I supposed to do about Yue and Haruna? I can't exactly cast a spell to erase their minds."_

"_Use that bottle on them. It'll blank their memories. I had to use it on…"_

The telepathy between the two boys goes silent for a moment as Clyde seemingly confers with the rest of his group.

"…_Misa! Yeah, the purple haired girl! Good thing I did too. By the time we found them in their dorms, Mad…no, Sakurako it was. Yeah, the clingy one! Well, let's just say that she found somebody else besides me to be clingy to. But that should take care of your little problem. You're screwed on the magic end for the most part now, so I couldn't leave you hanging, right?"_

"…_Right. Thanks, Clyde."_

Negi nods and smiles before taking a bottle from Asuna. The youth walks towards the confused librarians, motioning to the rest of the group to get behind them.

"Right, then. I'm sorry about this, you two."

Negi turns back around to take care of Haruna, but notices that the girl is now nowhere to be found. Deciding to take care of one problem at a time, Negi turns his attention to Yue and promptly sprays her, causing her to fall back into the waiting arms of Setsuna and Ku Fei. Negi sighs in relief as two thirds of the current task at hand is completed, but gulps in nervousness as he remembers just how efficient Haruna is when it comes to spreading gossip.

"Oh, bullocks! We are going to be in big trouble! I should have paid better attention! Now Paru-san is gone and she's going to blow my secret! I'm going to be an ermine for sure, and the girls? What's going to happen to them!?"

"Negi…"

"Hopefully if they have to do anything, they just erase their minds…but they're all my partners, so they'll be held to more responsibility! This is terrible!"

"Negi!"

"I'm overreacting. Yes, definitely overreacting. The council wouldn't do anything too bad to innocent girls…would they? I need to be able to plead on their behalf to try to save them from the wor…ouch!"

Asuna's third attempt to get Negi's attention is the charm as she brings her fist down hard into the top of his head. After blinking a couple of times in pain, Negi looks up to the girl teary eyed.

"What did you have to do that for, Asuna! I'm trying to figure out a way to protect you all!"

"From what? We found Paru."

Negi's look of worry is quickly replaced by one of relieved happiness as he clamps his arms around Asuna in an embrace. Slightly taken aback, the paper girl quickly manages to shove the relieved teacher off of her. Letting out a slightly irritated groan, Asuna motions for Negi to follow her through the slightly battered library.

"She didn't get too far. Only to the cuisine section. But…"

Asuna trails off as the two reach their destination, only to find a confused group of girls with an equally confused ermine watching on as Haruna is rummaging through the pages of various books, eating any page that has an appetizing looking picture on it.

"Need to get this info written down…but I'm so hungry! Just one more picture…maybe two…no, definitely one book! Yeah, then I'll find another one…"

"Negi-kun, maybe we should take care of her before she runs out of books and tries to eat us?" Konoka asks the teacher, watching on in shock as another cookbook finds a new home in Haruna's stomach.

Deciding enough is enough, Negi fires another shot from the perfume bottle, causing the manga artist to stop mid munch and fall straight forward, right onto the top of a surprised Negi. The teacher's face turns a deep crimson, as if not for the cookbook page sticking halfway out of Haruna's mouth the two would be sharing a direct kiss at this moment. The blushing boy takes in a deep breath to try to calm himself down after the unconscious girl is removed from the top of him.

"Th..thank you girls. I suppose that our business is done here, then, right?"

The girls all nod in agreement; shortly after Setsuna brings up an interesting point to the teacher.

"Well, that's good and all I guess, but how are we going to explain the damage to the library? I'm pretty sure that's going to raise some eyebrows."

"No problem, Ane-san!" Chamo crawls out of the front of Negi's suit and perches on the boy's shoulder, giving Asuna his best thumbs-up. "We'll just say it was an earthquake or tremors or something! Stranger things have happened at this school! Don't forget that we have a pretty impressive asset on our side as far as the media goes. Piece of cake, toots!"

Chamo's paws-up and smile go to the wayside as Setsuna, along with the rest of the girls look at him skeptically. Knowing that his excuse probably wasn't the best one, Chamo just chuckles lightly and continues on.

"OK…cross that bridge when we get there! We should probably get moving, Aniki! This is getting to be pretty entertaining by the end of the day, that's for sure."

* * *

**Team Clyde. Location: Cafeteria**

* * *

"So you're sure they aren't going to remember anything about that, Clyde-san?" 

The aforementioned boy chuckles and turns around, flashing a smile to the worried looking Ako before putting an arm around her shoulder in a showing of reassurance.

"No, the cheerleaders should be fine. Honestly now, why do you guys have so little faith in me? Haven't I been saying it's going to be alright for the past five minutes?"

"OK, OK. Just a little confused, I guess."

"I hear ya!" The duo looks over to see a grinning Yuna. "I'm not sure what was more strange: Madoka sleeping through the whole thing, Misa's expression, or Sakurako trying to und…"

"Yeah, yeah. We really don't need a recap, Akashi." Asakura shakes her head at the basketball player before a sly grin breaks out on her face. "We don't need a recap because we have photos!"

Clyde face palms with his free hand while Ako, Yuna, and Sayo look at the paparazzo with looks of horror. Asakura for her part just laughs and shakes her head in disbelief.

"Really now. Did you guys think that I would stoop that low!? That kind of hurts my feelings, y'know. Meh, I'll get over it, I suppose. By the way, thanks for the pose with Izumi-san there. '3-A Students Lucky In Love.' Nice ring to it."

Clyde and Ako look at each other confused before realizing that Clyde's arm is still draped across the girl's shoulders. Yelping in shock, Clyde quickly pulls his arm away from the blushing girl as Asakura does little to help the situation.

"So, how long have you two been dating then?"

"We haven't, Kazumi! And you know it!"

"So then, you and Akashi are going out?"

"Ye…no! Damnit, we don't have time for this!"

"How do you think your roommates will all respond? Haven't you been going out with them as well?"

"Oh, come on! You're making stuff up!"

"I only tell the facts, Clyde-kun. So then, how are you planning on marriage seeing as how you are juggling between seven girls?"

"Since when the hell were there seven!?"

"It's alright to be upset. Most people would be if they were exposed as having ten girlfriends at once."

"W…what?"

As Clyde continues to argue with the laughing Asakura, Yuna, Ako, and Sayo all shake their heads in disbelief.

"So do you think he's going to realize that she's just messing with him?"

"Eventually…maybe. I'm hoping that they get done here pretty soon, Ako."

"Hey, take a look at that!"

Yuna and Ako both look towards where the friendly spook is pointing to see a large pile of food at one of the tables. While it isn't strange to see that in a party setting, there only seems to be two people sitting at the table: the Narutaki twins. But whereas Fuka is watching on in confusion, Fumika is busy grabbing every single piece of food in a five table radius that isn't bolted down. The group continues to watch on in shock as the pink haired girl is able to intimidate those twice her size into surrendering their meal for the day.

"That's something you don't see everyday…Hey, Asakura, Clyde-kun! Check this out!"

The duo manages to end their conversation long enough to watch as Fuka cautiously inches towards her zealous sister, not quite sure how to initiate a conversation. Taking a deep breath, Fuka tries her hand at defusing the situation.

"Um…Fumika? What exactly are you doing?"

The mentioned girl looks over at her twin counterpart, shooting her a nasty look before responding.

"I'm taking what's mine. What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Hey, I'm all up for a prank…heck, I'm the source of most of our pranks…but I'm not sure where we're going to go with this."

"There's no "we" involved here, sister. This is all mine!"

Fuka as well as every person in the cafeteria watching just wince at the emphasis that Fumika had put on her last words. Giving the rest of the team a thumbs up, Clyde walks towards the twins, grinning the whole time.

"Wow, nice pile of stuff here. What's the occasion?"

Fumika manages to look up from her stockpile of ill-gotten foodstuffs long enough to glare angrily at Clyde.

"The occasion is I'm taking what's mine! Now hit the bricks!"

Fuka lets out a slight yelp in surprise, taken aback that the usual teasing the twins had saved for Clyde had turned to unwarranted rage in it's place. Clyde, instead of being taken aback, just continues chuckling, much to Fuka's surprise and Fumika's chagrin. Clyde pulls up a seat sits next to the stockpiling twin, pulling a bottle out of his pocket.

"What's that?" Fumika slightly grins in anticipation, knowing that it is going to be hers in a few short seconds anyways. Clyde for his part just continues to grin as he resumes the conversation.

"It's yours, of course."

"You got that right, Clyde! Now fork it over!"

Clyde's grin grows ever bigger as the girl has fallen for it, hook, line, and sinker. The boy chuckles as he raises the bottle to within a couple of inches of Fumika's face.

"Sure thing, hon. But first, you should try some to see if you really want it."

"Of course I want it! Now come on!"

"Whatever you say."

And with that trio of words, Clyde quickly blasts the unsuspecting twin with an antidote mist. The magically created pack rat stumbles backwards in a daze, landing in her pile and causing an avalanche of assorted foodstuffs to come cascading to the ground. Fuka for her part just stands there in stunned shock, trying to figure out how a blast from a bottle would be able to pacify her sister when her "reasoning" with her couldn't.

"What in the world was that, Clyde-kun?"

"Er…flu! Yeah, she had the flu. You couldn't tell?" Clyde chuckles to himself nervously before continuing to lie through his teeth. "Her cheeks were flushed and she was disillusioned. You see, this here is a new medicine that they just came out with for the flu. It helps to work as a sleep aid. Very expensive, but that's what friends are for, right?"

"Aw…that's so sweet of you. You sure she's going to be fi…"

Fuka soon finds herself on the ground unconscious as she takes a shot from one of the bottles, this one happening to belong to Yuna. Clyde looks at the basketball girl with a slight look of shock and frustration as her and Asakura high five each other in celebration.

"Yeah! We rock, Asakura!"

"Hell yeah! Awesome shot, Akashi!"

"I was convincing her, you know…"

The celebrating girls look at each other for a few moments before simultaneously breaking back into celebration mode.

"It's alright, Clyde-kun! Now you don't have to do any convincing! We saved you the trouble!"

"That's using our heads! Although, flu bug isn't really that exciting of an alibi. Are you sure I can't find something else to use for this little cover up story? Maybe something like a gas leak or something? Adds a sense of danger to it, knowing that any minute Takahata-sensei or somebody could light up a cigarette and blow the school sky high."

"Yeah! Or maybe we could say it was aliens trying to possess people with mind control!"

As Yuna and Asakura continue to come up with more and more 'interesting' cover stories, Ako and Sayo just look at each other with matching looks of confusion.

"How we haven't been busted so far is a large stoke of luck…" Ako shakes her head sadly as she hears Yuna spout off something about an insane hypnotist. "On second thought, it's a miracle that we haven't been busted. A pure miracle."

"We're pretty lucky that Fumika managed to scare pretty much everybody out of here." Sayo cracks a smile as she pauses in thought. "I think we'll be fine. We haven't had any trouble so far, right?"

"I suppose…why are you so optimistic anyways, Sayo-san?"

"Nothing wrong with thinking the glass is half full, is there?"

"True." Ako agrees with the spectre before glancing over to the now calmed down trio of Yuna, Asakura, and Clyde, who are all sharing smiles and chuckles before breaking into a smile herself. "I guess it's contagious…"

Unluckily for the five pack of students, the laughter comes to an end very abruptly as a clicking sound can be heard. Haphazardly turning around, Yuna finds herself face to face with one of Mana's revolvers.

"You touch my stuff again and I'll blow you away."

After blinking a couple of times in confusion, Yuna looks down to where her left hand is resting, finding it sitting right on a backpack in the pile that Fumika had made. Letting out a slight yelp, the basketball star quickly takes her hand off of it and puts it in the air to join the other one, chuckling nervously the whole time.

"Hey, nice gun you got there, Mana. Eh…a birthday present or something?"

"Trying to suck up isn't going to get you anywhere, Akashi. Now, put that perfume down and walk away from the pile."

Yuna does what she is told and nervously backpedals from the pile of ill-gotten goods before noticing Clyde slowly creeping up behind Mana. As if on cue, Mana pivots around as Clyde raises his bottle, spraying the bounty hunter in the face. Unfortunately for the boy, Mana's experience pays off as she fires a shot at Clyde, his white T-shirt being splattered with blood right in the middle of his chest and leaving horrified looks on everybody's faces. A wide-eyed Clyde is quickly helped to the ground by a stunned Yuna and Kazumi while Ako runs over to check on the boy's condition, taking deep breaths to attempt to work through the blood…

* * *

**Author's Notes; The Sequel: **And there it is! Another chapter in the books, about two weeks later than I was hoping. Three boos for my laptop with it's power connection issues! Although it was a bit of a blessing, to be honest. Originally I was going to finish out this little mini arc with this chapter, but as I got to thinking without my laptop and drawing up chapter outlines, I figured that I could stretch the arc out one more chapter as I have enough ideas...that, plus I didn't want to post a 10K chapter as that may be a wee bit too much in one sitting. Plus, I was able to end the chapter on an interesting cliffhanger. As usual, reviews are appreciated and if there's something you want to ask about or something you think would be a good idea, drop a mail or hit me up on AIM or MSN. So until next time, (Computer willing sooner rather than later), enjoy.

-Midnight


	11. Alchemy Madness Part 3: End Of The Line

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. Tis the season for giving, after all.

**Author's Notes: **First and foremost, sorry that my cliffhanger was a smidge on the lackluster side. Probably because it wasn't supposed to be a cliffhanger in the first place, but I digress. As for Eternal's take on the fan service, as a good news note for you, there's only one scene that is risqué in this chapter, but based on the nature of the potions, it's kind of needed. Negi being written as weary? Admittedly so, but there's a reason. Recaps are something that I could probably do a better job of as well. Anyways, Negi and co. have gotten some of their little deadly sin issue solved, but if you've been keeping score, you know that the job isn't quite over yet. On with the show…

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 11**

* * *

**Team Negi Location: Front of Mahora

* * *

**

"So how many do we have left now, Negi-sensei?"

Negi yelps in slight surprise as he turns his attention to Setsuna's question.

"Let's see…two at Clyde's dorm, two at the library, the two that Clyde took care of…that would mean at the most seven left. I haven't heard from Clyde lately."

"Go figure." Asuna scoffs, obviously not shocked at all by the blonde's lack of communication. "I take it that's what you were doing with that card."

Negi nods to the redhead as Negi scratches his head, not really sure to be annoyed or worried about Clyde's no-response to his pactio messages. The boy shakes his head and puts his thoughts on the blonde's silence to the side, opting to continue pressing on and solve that question later.

"_There's got to be a good reason that Clyde isn't answering, right? He's probably trying to take care of somebody else that has been affected by those potions…"_

Negi's train of thought is interrupted, not by anyone's voice, but rather by something in the corner of his eye. Quickly turning, he notices a pair of legs standing straight in the air. Negi and the rest of the group blink in confusion as their gazes draw lower and lower, seeing that it is simply Zazie walking about in a handstand.

"Hello, Negi-sensei."

Negi's slight surprise slightly intensifies, as it does for the girls with him, as Zazie talking is something of a rarity. Negi decides to proceed, if anything just for a rare conversation with one of his quietest students.

"Good afternoon, Zazie-san. Er…what's up with the handstand?"

"Training, of course. Have to keep myself in shape."

"I see." Negi nods at the girls' response, remembering some of the girls in his class talking about how she is a performer. The slight smile on Negi's face quickly deteriorates as he finds an irritated Zazie staring right into his eyes.

"I see?' That's all you have? I don't need your sarcasm, Negi-sensei."

"Sarcasm?" Negi tilts his head in puzzlement as he continues speaking. "I wasn't being sarcastic at all. I just remembered hearing about you being a performer."

"The best performer in Mahora."

"Really?"

The boy's response is met with a death glare from the white haired girl, fading away into a small smirk in a matter of seconds.

"I get it. You don't think that I am. Well, seeing is believing."

And with that, Zazie quickly springs into action, sprinting at a nearby direction sign. The teacher and schoolgirls can only watch on in amazement as the acrobat effortlessly balances on the top of the thin sign and back flips towards a nearby telephone pole, grabbing one of the upper rungs on the pole before she can crash to the ground. Letting out a small chuckle, Zazie swings back and forth on the rung, eventually using her momentum to slingshot herself between the telephone lines and on to the top of the pole. Zazie shakes her head, seemingly in disgust before jumping between the power lines, much to the horror of the quintet of onlookers below. A horror that is shortly lived as the acrobat grabs the same rung and slingshots up again, this time looking slightly more satisfied with her work.

"Zazie-san! Please come down!" The worry on Negi's face is only matched by that in his voice as he watches on in shock. Asuna decides to add her two cents as well, for once hoping that reasoning would be the best answer.

"Yeah, we get it! Just please come down so you don't get hurt!"

"Get hurt? Please. I know what I'm doing. What I don't know though is why you are questioning my abilities."

"We aren't questioning anything, Zazie-san." Setsuna pipes in. "It's just that wandering around on power lines probably isn't too smart…"

"Insulting my intelligence now too?"

Zazie shakes her head in frustration before walking backwards on one of the telephone lines, much to the gasps of Negi and co. Suddenly without warning, the acrobat flips in the air, landing on her feet on one of the lines facing the opposite direction she was prior. A small chuckle emitting from her throat, Zazie sprints on the line away from the group below. The shocked silence of the group is broken as a concerned Konoka gives chase to the acrobat, albeit on the ground rather than on phone lines.

"Ojou-sama!" Setsuna is quick to give chase to her friend as both her and Zazie fade into the distance. Negi tries to say something, but is cut off as he feels a hand on his shoulder. Quickly turning, he sees a smiling Ku Fei waving one of the antidote bottles in her hand.

"They forgot this. No worry, Negi-bozu. Us three can handle Zazie, yes?"

Seemingly pondering for a moment, Negi smiles and gives the martial artist a nod. The girl returns the gesture as she goes off after the trio ahead of her. As Ku fades into the distance as well, Negi and Asuna simultaneously let out sighs and sit down on the steps in front of the school in perfect symmetry. Letting out a slight yawn, Asuna turns to the pint sized professor.

"Well, Negi, any ideas of how we're going to track down the rest of Clyde's unintentional guinea pigs?"

"Heh…that is a very good question, Asuna. I don't think that we're going to be able to get by on just simply bumping into them. We're going to have to just keep looking I think."

Almost as if on cue, as soon as Negi finishes his sentence, him and Asuna are startled by the shouting of a female behind them.

"Repent, wicked ones!"

Negi and Asuna both sweat drop and slowly look behind them, not really sure what to expect.

* * *

**Team Clyde, Location: Cafeteria

* * *

**

"Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap!" Yuna winces as she looks on at a wide eyed Clyde who has been settled on the floor. "Ako! We have to do something!"

The aforementioned nurse takes a couple more deep breaths as she walks towards the wounded boy, quivering more and more as she gets closer to the blood. Closing her eyes as she gets closer, Ako reaches for his right wrist to check for a pulse. Gulping as she feels the boy's wrist, Ako's eyes shoot wide open, garnering the attention of Yuna and Asakura.

"Is he…?" Asakura asks, not really wanting to bring herself to say the last word.

"Actually…"

The one word is all the further that Ako is able to get before a groaning Clyde slowly gets to his feet, much to the shock of the girls. Letting out a slight groan, Clyde looks down at his shirt, putting a hand on the blood splatter in the middle of his chest and sniffing the blood on it.

"Not good! Clyde-kun's a zombie!"

Asakura is able to come out of her shock long enough to shoot a confused look at the panicking basketball star, tilting an eyebrow as she does so. Clyde for his part slowly ambles towards the unconscious Mana, wincing with pain as he does so. The blonde again looks at the mess that is on his hand now, smells it again, and licks a bit off of his index finger.

"He's got the taste of blood! This is terrible!

Asakura, Ako, and Sayo all look at each other with confused looks before Ako whispers something to the two. The paparazzo and specter's faces light up as the nurse finishes up. Yuna meanwhile is still staring at Clyde with a look of terror etched on her face as the blonde takes the gun that Mana shot him with. As the boy empties the ammunition out of the chamber, Yuna quickly grabs a lunch tray and sneaks up behind him.

"I'm sorry, Clyde-kun…"

The boy stops what he is doing long enough to turn towards Yuna. Flashing the girl a slight smile, Clyde sets the revolver down on the table next to Mana and takes a step towards the tray toting girl.

"Sorry for what? And what's with the tray?"

The answer that Clyde gets isn't exactly a happy one, as Yuna shrieks in terror before bringing the tray down on the top of Clyde's head. Clyde lets out a yelp of pain and instinctively reaches for his head in pain, dropping the bullets out of his hand as he does so. As the boy stumbles about disoriented, the girls turn their attention to the bullets as they hit and then splatter on the floor, leaving behind what looks like splotches of red paint. Yuna for her part stares in confusion, first at the kneeled over boy, then at the broken plastic lunch tray, then to the red substance on the cafeteria floor. As the basketball star chuckles nervously, Ako comes over and talks to her quietly.

"I was trying to tell you guys that he was fine. His pulse was slightly faster, yes, but that was probably from the scare of getting shot with a paint blank."

"Paint blank…?" Yuna continues with her nervous chuckling as she notices the irritated glare that she is receiving at the time from Clyde. "So that would mean that Clyde-kun…isn't a zombie…and I ended up hitting him…for no reason. Yikes…"

"Yikes!?" Clyde manages to get to his feet and storms over to the surprised girl who is still trying to think of a good excuse. "Yikes is all you have? Well gee, thank you so much for your compassion. Wha..?"

Clyde is temporarily taken aback as a sniffling Yuna wraps her arms around him in an embrace. The blonde both blushes and sweat drops as he looks into the girl's misty eyes.

"Thank you, Clyde-kun. You were going to take a bullet for us."

"Y…Yeah, I guess so. It helps when you know there isn't really any danger though."

"What do you mean by that, Clyde?"

"She's a bounty hunter, not a murderer. I'm glad that hunch paid off."

Clyde laughs aloud at his last comment while the girls around him all face fault to the ground. The blonde's laughing is quickly cut off as he finds his collar being grabbed in frustration not just by Yuna, but by Asakura as well.

"You were going off a hunch!? What the hell is the matter with you!?

"Hey, as a reporter, you should get this, Kazumi! You always work off hunches!"

"Not when they'll get me killed, you baka!"

"Hey, there isn't really any need for name calling…"

"Give me a break, Clyde-kun! That was an awfully baka-ish thing to do."

"What happened to the little moment we were having earlier?"

Yuna for her part just lets out a frustrated grunt and storms to the opposite side of the cafeteria, leaving a confused Clyde in her wake. The boy wonders about the basketball star's actions briefly before Asakura grills him again. Ako looks on confused, trying to figure out whether to diffuse the Clyde/Asakura situation or try to calm Yuna down. However, the nurse opts for a third option as her cell phone begins ringing. Taken aback by the ring tone, Ako quickly fumbles in her vest pocket for the phone.

"Hello? Hi Makie! What's going on?"

"Well, I was just wondering…you haven't noticed anything…funny about Akira lately, have you?"

Ako instantly perks up at the gymnast's question, going so far as to covering the phone to tell Asakura and Clyde to quiet down before continuing with the conversation.

"What do you mean, Makie?"

"Well you see, after class today, me and Akira went over to the dorms to go over our lines in the play. Anyways, things were going great…well I did kind of trip over the cords on my Playstation and wound up breaking one of those small little tables in the dorm…sorry about that!" A mixture of Makie giggling and Ako sighing puts a slight break in the conversation before the bubbly gymnast carries on. "But besides that, things were going great, we actually got a good chunk done and decided to take a little bit of a break. Just kicked the TV on and saw a swim meet on one of the sports channels."

"Okay." Ako figuratively shrugs to herself after Makie's last sentence, wondering what the point is that her roommate is trying to make.

"Yeah, so anyway, Akira started to go on about how she could do a better job with her eyes closed. Which she might be able to do since she is completely awesome at swimming. After watching for a few more minutes, Akira was saying how she was going to show them how it was done. I got a laugh out of it, but I think she's serious."

"Okay, so what's Akira doing now?"

"She said she was going to change into her swim suit, so I kinda barricaded her in the bathroom while she was doing that…"

Makie trails off as Ako can clearly hear the sound of pounding on the other end of the phone, followed by Makie apologizing to the swimmer. Suddenly, the gymnast comes back on the telephone sounding slightly less chipper and twice as panicked this time around.

"So yeah, if you and Yuna could hurry back here and give me a hand, that'd be really good! Thank you Ako!"

Ako attempts to say something else, but is met with the clicking of Makie's cell phone shut instead. Shaking her head, the girl goes over towards Yuna and explains to her about the peculiar call she just received. Meanwhile, Asakura has seemingly settled down towards Clyde.

"Fine, fine. Nobody got hurt, I guess. Still, be a little more careful, would ya? I haven't had to write an obituary yet and I don't really want to."

"Aw, thanks for the concern, Kazumi."

A raised eyebrow later and Asakura has grabbed Clyde by the collar yet again, a slight grimace painted on her face.

"I mean it, Clyde."

"Y…Yeah. No problem."

A slight smile appears on the paparazzo's face as she releases her grip. The duo quickly turns their attention to the worried looking trio of girls that is fast approaching them. Clyde tilts his head in confusion as Ako walks up to him.

"Hey, Clyde-san…I think we found another girl."

The blonde's confusion quickly evaporates into a grin at the news that their job might be easier now. Figuratively jumping for joy, Clyde sprints the remaining few feet towards Ako, making the girl let out a slight yelp.

"Whatcha got? Who is it? We got this!"

"Pretty happy for a guy that almost died…" Ako mutters under her breath before continuing on. "Well, I'm not sure, but the way it sounds, Akira found one of your little potions."

"Hmm…the swimmer, right?" Ako nods as Clyde's grin broadens. "Great, I'm remembering who's who. Better late than never. Shall we be off then?"

* * *

**Negi & Asuna Location: Front of Mahora**

* * *

"Misora san…er, nice outfit." 

Negi and Asuna exchange worried looks as the aforementioned girl walks towards them, dressed up in her nun outfit but with an interesting twist as in addition to the outfit, the girl has a large wooden cross that she is carrying on her left shoulder.

"I'd say that's a little odd, wouldn't you Negi?" Asuna mutters to the teacher, surprised that even being aided by a potion that the girl is able to carry the large object without much trouble.

"Just a little bit, Asuna." Negi gulps, nervously grabbing for the lone bottle of antidote that him and Asuna have left. As the boy slowly raises the bottle up, him and Asuna are sent backwards down the stairs as they dodge the baseball bat swing from Misora's cross. Realizing that it might be a good idea to put the bottle away until the nun is disarmed, Negi taps on the right side of his jacket, spurring Chamo to peek out from his pocket.

"Geez, can't a guy get a little shuteye?" Chamo looks up to his master with a look of slight irritation before his attention is directed towards the vengeful looking girl with the giant cross. "Yeah, I'm awake Aniki! I wonder what one she is."

The ermine doesn't have to wonder long as Misora focuses her attention on him. Letting out a slight yelp, Chamo quickly grabs the bottle from Negi and wisely makes his retreat back into the boy's jacket. It is too late, however, as the nun now has a mission of sorts.

"A talking animal! This is the work of the devil! I'm sorry Negi-sensei, but I must strike it down! I am on a mission from God!"

The small teacher lets out a slight yelp of shock as he takes a couple of steps backwards from the wrathful nun. Misora advances, but stops in her tracks as Asuna steps between the two, a mixed look of anger and worry etched on her face.

"Sorry Misora-san, but if you want to take a piece out of the kid, you're going to have to go through me first."

Misora scoffs at the redhead, carefully taking a couple more steps towards her before speaking again.

"You would dare to defend evil!? Prepare yourself, Kagurazaka!"

Asuna, seeing very clearly that Misora means business, quickly reaches into her pocket and pulls out her pactio card. A slight grin comes across her face as she shouts the word 'adeat.' After nothing happens, Asuna looks at Negi confused before shouting the activation word again. As in the case of the first attempt, the second one is unsuccessful as well. Now shooting an irritated look at Negi, the redhead goes off.

"Negi, what the hell is the deal!? Why isn't my card working! Is it broke or something?"

Frustrated, Asuna looks down at her card as if to check for tears or anything of the sort. Instead, to the girl's horror, the card itself is in perfect shape physically. However the scary bit for Asuna is that instead of the card's usual color, it is lacking in that aspect, save for the colors of black, white, and gray. Cursing to herself, Asuna swiftly reaches inside of Negi's jacket and pulls out the trying-to-hide ermine.

"Okay you furry little nuisance, what the hell gives!? You know this kind of stuff, so spill it!"

"Ane-san…you're choking me…ack!"

Asuna sighs and eases up off of her grip enough to let Chamo say his piece, not letting him go completely as the redhead is sure that she isn't going to be too pleased with the ermine's answer.

"It's simple, Ane-san! You see, ministras get their pactio power from the mage that they have a contract with, right? Well, seeing as how Aniki doesn't have any power to give right now due to his sealed magic, that kind of makes the pactio useless until he gets it back."

Asuna is about to make her rebuttal, but finds herself and Negi having to dodge another swing from Misora's cross before she has the chance. With a few seconds to spare now that the girl has to re-adjust the cross, Asuna turns her attention and ire back towards Chamo.

"You knew this would happen and you didn't think that it was important enough to tell us!? What the hell is wrong with you!?"

Chamo tries to get out an answer, but is unable to as Asuna has re-applied the grip she had on him earlier. Seeing that it's a lost cause for the time being, Asuna sighs and hands the nearly-strangled ermine back to a worried looking Negi.

"Plan B for now, I guess…" Asuna mutters quietly to a confused Negi.

"What do you mean by 'Plan B' Asuna?"

"This." After the one word, Asuna grabs Negi and sprints down the sidewalk away from the nun. Negi adjusts his specs and tries his hardest to keep up with the girl, not really sure why she has broken out into a full-blown retreat.

"Asuna!? What are we doing?"

"I'm getting you someplace safe, you little brat!"

"But we have to take care of Misora-san!"

Asuna lets out a low growl before turning back to the drag along teacher.

"Look, you don't have your magic, right? I don't need you getting in the way while I try to stop her, OK?"

"Asuna, are you sure about this?"

"Trust me Negi! We've been through worse, haven't we? Besides…"

Asuna pauses briefly as she opens and shuts a glass door, leaving the irked nun outside.

"…she can't fit that large cross in through the dorm doors. Now we just need to figure out how to get close enough to spray her."

"Asuna?"

"Yeah, Negi?"

"What's she doing?"

Confused, Asuna turns her gaze towards the glass doors. Misora has stopped her pursuit of the duo, but doesn't look too frustrated. Instead, the two watch on as Misora calmly sets the cross on the ground and taps on the top of it. Much to their shock and eventual horror, the top of the cross opens up and the nun pulls out two smaller ones. Wagging a disapproving finger at the redhead, Misora storms through the doors and continues her chase.

"What in the world do you need a carrying case like that for!?" Asuna shouts in disbelief as her and Negi round a corner in the dorms. "Why doesn't anything around here make sense anymore!?"

"Asuna…I don't think I can keep up with you much longer…"

The redhead's attention sharply turns to the young boy, with her letting out a slight gasp at the sight of Negi's obvious fatigue.

"_Right, right…he's just like a normal kid when he doesn't have his magic. Damnit, why couldn't they have punished Negi some other way? Think, Asuna, think!"_

Nodding to herself, Asuna quickly reaches inside of Negi's jacket, grabbing the potion bottle and ermine in one fell swoop. Negi is able to stop panting long enough to watch on as Asuna flashes him a wink before stopping in her tracks and throwing him into one of the dorms. Misora finally rounds the corner as Asuna slams the door shut behind the powerless mage. The belled girl smirks as Misora slowly stalks towards herself and a now terrified Chamo.

"Ane-san, what are you doing!? Why do I have to be here for this!?"

"Hey, you're the one that's the work of the devil. Figure it out, Chamo!"

"It's time for repentance, Kagurazaka!"

"Repentance…well, maybe if you can catch me!"

Asuna lets out a slight chuckle as she runs away from Negi's hiding spot, trying and succeeding in drawing the nun away from the temporarily powerless mage. As the girl continues to flee, she stashes Chamo in her vest pocket and readies her bottle.

"_Come on Misora. Way to leave the kid alone."_

* * *

**Team Clyde Location: Dormitories**

* * *

"Right then, which one? Here?" 

Clyde beams as he opens up a door, sweat dropping as he sees Kaede asleep on a couch. Lightly punching himself in the head, Clyde shuts the door behind him, laughing as he does so.

"Whoops! Kind of forgot this was my room."

The blonde continues to laugh as the girls all look at each other strangely, each wondering how Clyde is so cheerful considering that he could have very possibly gotten a lot closer with Sayo had things been slightly different. Ako shakes her head in slight frustration as she gently grabs Clyde's shoulder and pulls him in the right direction. A few feet and one left turn later, the group is at their destination. Ako goes to open the door, slightly cursing under her breath at the stubbornness of the door. Always one to lend a helping hand to a damsel in distress, Clyde quickly offers his assistance in opening the door. A hard shove and a muttering behind the door later and the group finds themselves in the dorm. As the group all files in, the first thing they notice is the cause for their door difficulty; namely Makie who is now leaning on the wall next to the door, letting out an occasional light snore.

"Um…you alright, Makie?" Ako lightly taps the drowsy gymnast on the shoulder, to little avail. After shrugging to the rest of the group, Yuna decides a route that isn't nearly as kind.

"Makie! Somebody stole your favorite ribbon!"

This method works slightly better, as the girl pushes herself from the wall and takes a couple of half-awake steps before falling both asleep and forward, passing through the concerned looking Sayo before crashing into Clyde and Asakura, sending the unsuspecting trio to the ground in a heap. Yuna for her part just chuckles nervously as Ako watches on in shock.

"Well, at least she's sleeping on the floor rather than the wall. That's a start, right Ako?"

"Probably not the best start, but I guess so."

"Hey guys? I think Clyde isn't doing so hot right now."

The sports duo stop their short conversation and look down at the twister-esque display in front of Ako's open door, noting that Makie's head is resting right below a grimacing Clyde's chin. Ako shakes her head and wanders into the kitchen while Yuna picks the slumbering gymnast up out of the pile. The nurse returns a few seconds later holding a frozen steak.

"Sorry, Clyde-san, but it looks like we're out of ice. This should work for now, right?"

The groggy blonde looks back in forth between the frozen beef and the smiling nurse before grabbing the steak from the girl's hand and putting it under his chin. Staggering a little bit as he pulls himself up, the boy continues his stumbling before leaning on a door a few feet away.

"We're good, I think. So, where are we supposed to look for Akira, anyways?"

"Well, Makie said that she locked her in the bathroom until she could figure something out…by the way, that would be the door you're leaning on right now."

"No kidding? Well then, let's get this over with…"

Clyde finds himself cut off as he falls to the ground in Ako and Makie's dorm for the second time today, as Akira has finally sprung herself from her makeshift prison, booting the door down in the process. All the hapless blonde can do is yelp in pain as the black haired girl storms from the bathroom, stomping on the fallen door as she does so. Not really paying any attention to the person she just crushed, Akira makes her way over to Yuna and Ako.

"Hey roomie! Uh…so what's going on?" The basketball star shrugs as Ako shoots her a 'what the hell' look. "Nice swimsuit there. Practice or something?"

Akira smirks slightly before shaking her head.

"Not today, Yuna. Swim meet."

"That sounds cool! And where would that be? Here at Mahora?"

"Nope. Los Angeles. Right now."

All the girls look at each other and exchange amused/confused looks as Yuna continues on, chuckling as she does so.

"And you're going to get on the plane like that?"

"No time to wait for a plane, Yuna. I got to get there as soon as I can, so I'm just going to swim across the ocean. It's not THAT far of a swim. I bet I won't even break a sweat!"

Before anybody can offer up a rebuttal, Akira sprints through the still open dorm door and into the hallway. As the swimmer makes her escape, Yuna quickly throws the door off of Clyde and grabs one of the bottles from him before sprinting with Ako after the speedy swimmer.

"Today just isn't my day…"

Asakura for her part just laughs at the slightly crushed mage before helping him to his feet. After getting off the ground, Clyde sits down in the chair that they had placed Makie and sighs in exhaustion. Feeling the girl's head leaning on his shoulder, Clyde reaches into his pocket and grabs the lone potion bottle that he has, spraying the sleeping girl in the face. Letting out a pained groan, the blonde picks himself out of the chair and stumbles towards the door, actually looking around the door nervously as if expecting some other mishap to occur. Seemingly relieved, Clyde turns his attention towards Asakura.

"Ever have one of those days?" The redhead's response is swift and instantaneous as she face palms at the blonde's question. "Oh, right. Hey, I'm sorry I made a mess of things today. Probably not what you wanted to spend your free time fixing."

"Not really…but it's fine. With you and Negi-kun around, things don't get too boring. That's a plus. Of course, if you wanted to do something that I could actually write about, that would be even better."

The mage and paparazzo exchange amused smirks as they lean on the wall next to the doorway. After a few silent moments, Asakura taps Clyde on his shoulder.

"Hey, Clyde-kun?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

Before the redhead has time to respond, Clyde notices something odd out of the corner of his eye. Peering outside the open dorm door, Clyde's left eyebrow finds itself lifting as the image of a sprinting Asuna grows ever closer. Asakura joins in on the looking as several meters behind the girl Misora is giving chase, brandishing two wooden crosses like maces.

"I know I haven't been here the longest and don't know everybody the best, but that probably isn't how she usually acts, is it?"

After the reporter shakes her head 'no,' Clyde grabs the bottle out of his pocket and steps into the hallway after Asuna passes. With the newfound intrusion in front of her, Misora slows down slightly in her pursuit before shouting out to Clyde.

"Move or I shall smite you too!"

"I've already had my share of smiting today. Sorry hon."

Misora in her state obviously doesn't respond too well to this, taking a swing at Clyde with the left cross. Clyde effortlessly sidesteps the blow and sprays the girl in the face before back flipping out of the way of Misora's right hand swipe. Going unconscious halfway through her spin, the nun finds herself resting comfortably on the dorm's carpeted hallway. Asuna stops in her run at the sound of the thud behind her, turning to see the knocked out nun, the applauding reporter, and the grinning mage. The blond turns his attention towards Asuna, now walking towards them.

"Hey papergirl! How we doing?"

"Better if I didn't have to clean up your mess, baka."

Clyde winces at the girl's sharpness before carrying on.

"That hurts. Not as bad as your test scores hurt though, Ms. Baka Red."

"Adeat."

Asuna sweat drops a few moments later, apparently remembering that no Negi magic means no Asuna artifact. Clyde laughs and pats the girl on the shoulder, mentioning that he could have told her that would happen. The blonde's laughing comes to an abrupt end however as Asuna knocks him into the wall with a well placed roundhouse kick. Deciding to change the subject to save them any further property damages Asakura motions for Asuna to come closer.

"Say, Asuna. What happened to the rest of your group anyways? Izumi and Akashi are off chasing down our favorite swim star."

"Well, Ku Fei, Setsuna, and Konoka went after Zazie and as for Negi, he should be here in the dorms. I tossed him into an unlocked dorm so I could get Misora to chase after me."

Clyde flips the girl a pained thumb's up before grabbing his pactio card with the aforementioned mage and placing it to his head.

"_Hey, how we doing, bud?"_

"_Clyde! I'm so happy to hear from you! You got to help me!"_

"_What do you need my help with? Didn't Asuna kick you into a room or something?"_

"_Yes, and that's the problem! You see…"_

The boy's telepathy comes to an abrupt end without any warning leaving only a worried Clyde in its wake. Stumbling towards Asuna, Clyde raises his hand, hoping that will be the method of getting her attention that wouldn't get him hit.

"What do you want?"

"Yeah…about the room you tossed Negi in…you wanna take us there?"

"And why is that?"

"You didn't check that room beforehand, did you? Short stuff is in trouble."

"What!?"

Asuna's eyes nearly shoot out of her head as she sprints back down the hallway. Asakura, Sayo, and Clyde all exchange shrugs before giving chase. After a couple minutes of running, Asuna finally stops in front of a door and is about to open it, well until she is tackled to the ground by Clyde and Asakura, both unable to put the brakes on in time. Clyde quickly gets out of the pile and helps the two girls up, getting smacked on the head with a closed fist for his troubles. Eyes watering, the blonde opens up the door, almost instantly putting one hand over his eyes and one hand over his now bleeding nose. Letting out a scoff of disgust, Asuna pushes the bleeding blonde to the side and walks in the room, gasping at the sight in front of her.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing, Negi!?"

"…"

Asuna grumbles at the boy's silence, although it is probably to be expected. The reason? Straddling a shirtless Negi on the dorm's bed is a potion induced Chisame, who save for her skirt, panties, bra, and bunny ear headband is pretty much naked. The girl lets out a giggle as she waves Negi's pactio card in front of him.

"Oh dear…it looks like we have an audience. Could you at least close the door?"

Chisame lets out yet another giggle as she runs a hand through her hair before putting a finger on Negi's lips, who for his part is still frozen in fear. Taking a deep breath, Clyde finally finds himself able to speak.

"Asuna, Kazumi…one of you two want to spray the happy girl there? Before she does anything that will scar Negi any more than he already is?"

"Scar Negi? You're mistaken there cutie." Chisame shoots the self-blinded blonde a smile. "All I'm doing is showing him some things."

"Come on reds. Why don't one of you show her something? You know, like a way out of this or a perfume bottle or something?"

Asuna is able to come out of her initial shock and quickly sprays the half-clothed girl, catching her and setting her to the side of the bed. After getting the still stunned Negi out of the bed, Asuna tosses the covers over the net idol as Asakura tells Clyde he can open his eyes again.

"Hey, brat. You OK?"

Negi blinks a couple of times at Asuna, noting the small smile on her face. After a few seconds, the boy breaks out of his stupor and wraps his arms around the papergirl, who finds herself slightly taken aback.

"Thank you, Asuna! Thank you! It was horrible! She just overpowered me! I didn't have a bottle to stop her and…"

"Hey, it's alright now. We got it taken care of. You don't have to worry, k?"

"You know, if he was a few years older, he probably wouldn't be complaining."

"Not funny, Asakura!"

"Ah, don't be such a downer, Kagurazaka. Everything worked out, so be happy!"

While Asakura and Asuna slightly bicker, Clyde walks over to the recovering Negi and pats him on the back.

"Hey, Negi. You suppose we should figure out who's left?"

"Yes. I suppose that would be the best thing we could do right now."

Clyde nods and looks about the room, walking towards Chisame's backpack as soon as he spots it. A few moments later, he returns with a notebook and pen. After a few minutes of concentration, the duo comes up with their list.

_**X**1: Chizuru-Envy_

_**X**2: Nodoka-Wrath_

_**X**3: Madoka-Sloth_

_**X**4: Sakurako-Lust_

_**X**5: Kaede-Gluttony_

_**X**6: Haruna-Gluttony_

_**X**7: Fumika-Greed_

_**X**8: Mana-Greed_

_9: Zazie-Pride; Pursued by Konoka/Setsuna/Ku Fei_

_**X**10: Misora-Wrath_

_11: Akira-Pride; Pursued by Ako/Yuna_

_**X**12: Makie-Sloth_

_**X**13: Chisame-Lust_

"Yeah, that looks about right…doesn't it?"

"I think so, Clyde." Negi sighs as he knows that his next sentence isn't going to be very popular, but needs to be said nonetheless. "I suppose that after we help track down Misora-san and Akira-san that we should talk to the Headmaster."

"No need to track anybody down, Negi-kun."

The teacher's ears perk up at the voice and he quickly pivots about to see a smirking Takahata leaning in the doorway. Clyde for his part just waves nervously, Asuna's face turns red as she takes a bow, and Asakura snickers at the papergirl's spectacle. The older teacher takes a few steps into the room and puts a hand on Negi's head, seemingly trying to put the boy at ease.

"The rest of your companions are waiting for us in the Headmaster's office. Shall we go?"

* * *

"I'm glad that you could join us." 

Negi lets out a nervous chuckle as he bows in respect before looking on down the line. With each passing girl, the youth's hope sinks lower and lower. Yuna and Ako? Both damp, a patch of algae on the basketball ace's left shoulder. Ku Fei, Setsuna, and Konoka? All three showing the signs of fatigue from pursuing Zazie, both in their physical conditions and the status of their clothes, all of which with their fair shares of dirt, grime, and tears. Asuna? Missing her right shoe due to her fun game of cat and mouse. Clyde? A white school uniform shirt with a large paint blotch in the dead center. And as for Negi, no shirt whatsoever. Negi seems about to say something, but is cut off as the Headmaster begins.

"So Negi-kun, I assume that you were able to take care of the others involved in your little problem?"

"Yes sir."

"You can relax, Negi-kun. You and your students aren't in trouble."

Negi's face brightens up at the news, but a thought crosses his mind.

"What about Clyde? He was the one that created the potions, yes, but he didn't mean for them to be consumed."

"I'm aware of that fact, but I would still like to speak to Metro-kun by myself. I just wanted to gather you all here to tell you not to worry about a thing."

"Hey, grandpa?" Konoka taps on the old man's shoulder before continuing. "What about the rest of the academy? Wouldn't somebody who'd seen this be a little suspicious?"

"Yeah!" Asakura chips in, grinning slightly. "I mean, our class has a rap as being a little…er, off the wall, but even that has to have some limitations."

The Headmaster for his part just grins from under his white beard before dismissing the worries of the girls.

"I am aware of that fact, yes. That is why I've cast a spell to adjust the memories of the mundane here at Mahora. As far as they know, there was a slight earthquake yesterday, causing slight damage to Library Island. I trust you can all stick with that story, correct? Consider it a proper thank you for what you did for Konoka."

The youths all nod in agreement at the old man's request. Shortly afterwards, Yuna leans over and whispers into Clyde's ear.

"Can he really do that? I mean, I know he's the Headmaster and all, but he's…"

"Old?" Clyde offers up, earning him a death glare from the old man and various snickers from the girls accompanying him. The embarrassed blonde bows and quickly apologizes.

"Hmm…I may be old, yes, but power sometimes comes with age. You would do well to remember that for the future, Clyde-kun. As for the rest of you, you are dismissed. Clyde-kun and I need to have a conversation."

"Good luck, Clyde." Asakura snickers as she walks past him, causing the blonde to mockingly stick his tongue out at the redhead as she passes. As the rest of the group files out, the Headmaster motions for Clyde to have a seat in front of his desk as Takahata shuts the door behind Negi.

"Now then…"

* * *

**Chapter 12 Preview: **"Hey there! This is Clyde Metro, student number 32 and Observer of Negi Springfield…well, temporarily suspended Observer of Negi Springfield, anyways. Well, we got through this little incident no worse for the wear…pretty much anyways. Apologies to Negi for forgetting that I could teleport him through my pactio, but hopefully he won't be scared of girls! But anyway, where one door closes, another opens! It just wouldn't suit this school if things stayed quiet for long. H…Hey! Who's the pretty girl there? She looks awfully familiar…what!? Magic!? Don't be silly! Where would you get an idea like that? Well, it looks like we have another incident to deal with, next time on Negima: Fallout! …say, would you like some soda, cutie?"

* * *

**Author's Notes, Part Two: **And so ends another misadventure of Negi, Clyde, and the Mahora girls. Hopefully everybody got a kick out of this little mini arc. What will develop because of it? Will there be repercussions? Probably. The story is named "Fallout" after all. Thanks again to Dark Dragon Dave for the proofreading job, as well as for helping me determine which lucky girl got which not so lucky potion. As usual, reviews, questions, comments, suggestions, and even flames are welcome. AIM, MSN, E-mail…you know the drill. Kudos for reading and stay tuned for Chapter 12. 

_-Midnight_


	12. Cosplay & Payback: An Interlude For Chiu

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. The bank account is pretty drained after X-Mas.

**Author's Notes:** Welcome back to the show! First off, kudos to all that reviewed. As always, it's appreciated. Secondly, I would like to dedicate this chapter to GaleBread for his decision for the next knowing mundane, as well as X Serac for his much talked about but never utilized janitor. You guys rock! As we saw in the last few chapters, Clyde inadvertently caused a bit of a mess for Negi and the rest of the class, in the form of handy dandy deadly sin mimicking potions. That little mess has been resolved, so what's next for everybody's favorite little prodigy? Let's find out…

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 12**

* * *

It is another beautiful day at Mahora academy. The birds are chirping, the sun is shining, and for once, everybody in room 643 is awake with plenty of time to spare before the start of school. The only other oddity in the room rather than everybody on pace to be on time is the shiner that Negi is sporting on his left eye. Konoka winces, seemingly able to feel the young boy's pain as he rests an ice pack on his eye socket, while Asuna shakes her head, a small smirk etched on her face as she does so.

"First day could have went a little better for you, huh?"

Negi is able to take a break in his wincing long enough to shoot the redhead a slight smirk of his own before replying.

"It's been a little while since I've last seen Ku Fei in action. I forgot she was so quick! We were only able to get about fifteen minutes in this morning."

The girls both notice Negi sigh at his last comment as he pokes at his eggs with a fork. Konoka, being the positive sort she is, reaches an arm around the small boy's shoulders and rubs his hair with her free hand.

"Don't be too sad, Negi-kun! Fifteen minutes isn't anything to be ashamed of, especially with your lack of magic right now."

"Well, she did say that she was surprised I lasted so long without my magic…"

"See? You just have to keep thinking positive, Negi-kun! You'll be a martial arts master in no time at all! Right, Asuna?"

The redhead looks up from her own breakfast long enough to shoot Negi a thumbs up in response.

"You may be a brat, but you're a tough brat. Hang in there, kiddo."

With the support from his roommates, Negi finds himself feeling a little more confident in his abilities, even if he is keeping silent about the true cause of his black eye. Not from a Ku Fei strike with a fist or foot, but rather from a stiff shot to the face from a small log during a dodging exercise. After uttering a quick thank you to both girls, Negi digs back into his breakfast, ready to face whatever life may have in store for him today. The quiet sounds of utensils scraping plate are silenced as Konoka asks the small teacher a question.

"Negi-kun, you said you were going to check out the library before you went to class today, right?" Negi lets out a slight nod as he continues eating. "You mind if I tag along with you? I should probably check how bad it is there. Wouldn't be much of a Library Club member if I didn't help out, right?

"Sure. No problem, Konoka-san." Negi smiles to the brown haired girl before turning his attention back to Asuna. "How about you? No paper route today? You're more than welcome to come with us."

"I'm going to have to pass. Ayaka is making me come in early so we can go over our swordfight in the play." The redhead mutters to herself at the prospect of having to duel the rep before speaking again. "I don't see what the hell she would know about a sword fight anyways…speaking of which, can we switch roles? Why does Ayaka get to kill me?"

"Tybalt kills Mercutio. I'm sorry, but those are the parts that you two have." Negi smiles at the girl, doing little to soothe her anger. "Think of it as a bonding experience between you two. Well, we should be going, Konoka. See you in class, Asuna!"

And before the redhead has a chance to say anything, she finds herself sitting at the breakfast table by herself, amazed at just how quickly the bruised teacher was able to escape without any magic to aid him.

* * *

"Wow…"

That one word is all the duo of Konoka and Negi need between them to express their thoughts on the state of the library. While it is obvious that some of the damage done has already been repaired, there is still quite a lot of work to do. Negi puts his hand on his chin, trying to think of some way that he could help, even without magic when he suddenly is pulled out of his thoughts by a male's voice behind him.

"Quite a mess, huh, Negi-sensei?"

Negi quickly pivots and finds himself staring right into the midsection of what appears to be a set of dark blue coveralls. Gazing up, Negi is able to see a grinning yet unfamiliar face. After taking a couple of steps back, the boy is able to get a better look: a man with dark brown curtained hair, brown eyes, and a five o' clock shadow. From Negi's best guess, he assumes the man is in his mid twenties. After exchanging confused looks with Konoka, the boy responds.

"Indeed…I'm sorry, but do I know you?"

The older man lets out a short laugh before shaking his head.

"My apologies, Negi-sensei. It's just that being a ten year old teacher tends to give you a little bit of fame around the campus. My name is Barry Kobayashi. Strange name, I know. American mother, Japanese father. Wanted to keep some of both cultures, I guess."

"Oh, I see." Negi nods, still wondering exactly why this man is talking to him. Konoka for her part giggles as she gently elbows Negi in the shoulder.

"Looks like you have a fan, Negi-kun."

"A fan, huh? Yeah, I suppose I could be described like that. I am going to school to get into teaching after all. I go to school at the university here, but as you could well imagine, college life isn't cheap. The only job they had open on campus was being a janitor, so I guess that explains why I'm here."

Barry laughs and grins as a sweat drop forms on Negi's head. After a couple of seconds, Negi returns the man's grin and extends his hand.

"Well, Kobayashi-san, I hope that you are able to succeed in your goal. I hope to see you around."

The older man continues his grin as he shakes the small boy's hand before adding a peculiar comment in.

"You know, I have to say that you are a lot nicer than my assistant was saying you were." After studying Negi's blank stare for a moment or so, Barry shouts towards a tilted over bookcase. "Hey, buddy! Take five and come on over here!"

The sight that greets Negi and Konoka next is enough to make both of them snicker, as walking towards them is a frustrated looking Clyde, sporting a dark blue coverall outfit of his own. The blonde just grits his teeth the best that he can as he haphazardly raises a hand to wave hello.

"Hey, good morning guys. Er, how's it going?"

"Fine, Clyde. That's…" Negi pauses briefly as he has a snickering fit, much to the older boy's chagrin. "…that's quite some outfit you have there. I take it that's what your conversation with the Headmaster was about yesterday?"

"Yep. He said he wasn't really too angry, as it was accidental, and according to some of the things that happen here, he said it was mild. But he still wanted me to learn to 'clean up messes.' Poetic justice, I think?"

"Yeah, that sounds like my grandpa!" Konoka beams, Clyde not having much of a choice but to slightly ease up on his frustrated look due to the girl's cheer. "Hang in there though, Clyde-kun! Who knows? Maybe Kobayashi-san can teach you something!"

"So being a janitorial assistant is poetic justice for accidentally stumbling into the girl's locker room?" Barry scratches his chin before shrugging. "Can't really say I get it, but that would be the Headmaster's idea, I suppose. Well, Negi-sensei, Konoka-chan, you two have a good day. Clyde-san and myself should get back to work. Awfully nice of the Headmaster to exempt Clyde from classes for the day so we can get a good initial jump."

"Anything I can do to help you? I'm part of the Library Club, after all."

"Nah, don't you worry your little head about that. You just go on to school and learn. Thank you for the offer though."

Negi and Konoka both wave goodbye to their classmate/student and new acquaintance before turning and leaving the library. Unknown to either of the four, there is a fifth person in the library, who is shaking her head in frustration. That girl in question? Number 25, Chisame Hasegawa. Shaking her head in disbelief, the girl seemingly becomes lost in thought…

* * *

**Flashback: The night before**

* * *

"What the…why does my head hurt so much?"

The orange haired girl lets out a slight yawn and stretches before noticing a couple of odd things. One, the odd sleeping attire she is wearing, consisting of bra, panties, school skirt, and bunny ear headband. The girl rummages through her mind, knowing that while half the time she cosplays herself to sleep, she isn't keen on doing it in her school attire. The second and most alarming thing? The set of pants that are lying on the floor next to her bed. Pants that appear to be too small to fit a teenage girl, save for maybe Yue. Letting out a slight gasp at that sight, Chisame quickly scurries over to her computer, relieved to see that the webcam is on.

"_Good. Maybe now I can get some answers. Something funny is going on here, and I'm going to find out just exactly what the hell it is…"_

A few minutes later and the girl finds her gaze locked on the computer screen, a look of shock and horror on her face. As the computer continues playing, the look on her face remains locked in, not even disappearing as the bunny ear headband she is wearing gradually slopes down her forehead, across her eyes, and eventually down into her lap. Chisame finds herself wanting to shout something at her computer as she watches her past self being knocked out by what looks like a perfume bottle, but her rant is stopped before it can start as she hears a peculiar thing in the middle of Asuna and Asakura shouting at each other…

"Oh, calm down, Asuna. I know that magic isn't all fun and games! It's just so fun to see you get irritated about me teasing you guys."

"It isn't something to tease about, Asakura! What we're doing here is serious, Asakura!"

"Yeah, I know that Negi-kun and Clyde-kun being wizards is something that we need to take seriously, but you don't need to be oh-so-serious about it. Too much stress will kill you."

Having seen enough, Chisame hits pause on the feed she is watching, taking a few moments to try to absorb what she had just heard.

"_Magic!? Wizards!? What in the hell? They're talking gibberish, right? Although that would explain that perfume bottle knocking me out…come to think of it, Asakura really hasn't said anything to me after we got those photos from Asuna's birthday party developed…hell, we even have a ghost as a classmate! If haunting are real, why not magic?"_

Shaking her head in disbelief, Chisame continues on with her thoughts, not really caring to have to explain any loud noises from her room, be they shouts or her striking things in frustration.

"_Listen to yourself, Chisame! Magic is just a fairy tale! There's plenty of perfectly reasonable shows on TV that explain the paranormal. Nothing at all on explaining magic as reality…although now that I think about it, I'm starting to remember something about that bookworm girl…being in an angry rage? Hmm…Chizuru did seem to be awfully jealous of something. She took my laptop and said she wanted it? No…glasses, wasn't it? Why can't I remember?"_

Sighing in near defeat, Chisame resumes watching her computer, hoping to find something that will help clear some of her mental fog. A couple of minutes later, a light bulb seems to go on for the cosplay gal as she hits pause again, leaning over to the far side of her desk and grabbing a notebook; the very same notebook that Negi and Clyde used to make their list with. The expression on the girl's face slightly brightens up as she is able to make vaguely make out indented words on the front sheet .

"_Let's see here. 'NodokaWrath?' 'SakurakoLust?' Well, she was hanging all over that new idiot…at least I think she was. 'ChizuruEnvy…' That works, I guess….wait a minute. ChisameLust!?"_

Now mentally panicking, Chisame probes her mind, trying to think just when she would have had an opportunity to have been infected by one of Clyde's confections. As she scans her brain, she face palms as she recalls the class meeting that they had after school a couple of days prior. Chisame's frustration grows as she continues to recall the day, putting her best and completely correct guess into the idea of the soda she drank being the potion that made her do something that she definitely regrets. As the girl continues to think, a small smirk starts to form on Chisame's face. As the girl continues to sit in silence, her smirk eventually goes through a metamorphosis into an evil grin.

"_That's it. Tomorrow I'm going to find out all I can about that little 'earthquake' that we had. Maybe not so much of an earthquake as somebody going on a crazy rampage! I'll get my answers…and then they'll pay. Nobody makes a fool out of Chiu! Nobody!"_

With the conclusion of her last thoughts, Chisame can't help but to let out an evil laugh of sorts, quickly shutting up as she hears one of her neighbors pounding on the wall. Simmering down a little bit, Chisame continues to grin evilly as she begins her planning process…

* * *

**End Flashback**

* * *

Snapping herself out of her thoughts, Chisame runs towards the nearest restroom, chuckling to herself the whole time. A few meters away, Barry and Clyde continue their task of library repair and pick up…

"Say, Clyde-san? C'mere for a sec, would ya?"

Shrugging to himself, the blonde makes his way around a couple of tilted bookshelves over to the older janitor. When he arrives, Clyde face palms as he notices something peculiar out of the magazine that Barry is holding up; namely the fact that it has what appears to have parts of it bitten out.

"I know earthquakes make people do strange things, but eating a magazine on cooking?"

Clyde just laughs nervously at the janitor's question, coming to the conjecture that Barry is in the dark as far as magic is concerned. Quickly scrambling to come up with an answer for the man, Clyde quickly speaks.

"Maybe somebody thought they were trapped in here, panicked, and thought they would starve to death?"

"I suppose so, we haven't found anybody trapped here."

Clyde lets out a laugh, causing Barry to raise one of his eyebrows in response.

"Someone pulling a prank on us? I mean, what other reason would there be to eat a magazine? Unless it was some kind of weird hypnotism or something like that." Barry puts a hand to his chin, seemingly in thought. "Eh, maybe we'll find an answer somewhere around here. Help me prop this case back up, would ya? Shouldn't be that heavy since most of the books fell out of it. Aw, don't give me that look, Clyde-san. Surely it has to be lighter than the last couple of shelves."

The duo looks at each other, chuckling slightly at the janitor's lie before getting back to work.

* * *

A few hours of back breaking work later, and Clyde and Barry find themselves done…well for the day anyhow. Where there is a bit of Nodoka's damage that the two have offset, there is still quite a bit of renovation ahead. As the two exchange farewells, Clyde notes someone leaning on a wall in a shaded hallway. Scratching his head in puzzlement, as the library is temporarily closed off, the blonde goes to investigate.

"Um, excuse me? You know you aren't supposed to be in…"

The boy stops talking as he gets closer, being able to make out the person. Leaning up against the wall in a pink skirt and white tank top is a smiling Chisame…well, in Chiu disguise with pink hair anyways. The girl smirks at Clyde, taking the lollypop out of her mouth and waving at him before putting it back in.

"…here." Clyde's jaw nearly hits the floor as he tries his best not to stare at the beauty in front of him. Something strange about the girl, but Clyde isn't quite able to put his finger on it. "Have we met before?"

Chisame lets out a giggle as she flicks her bangs out of her eyes, much to Clyde's amusement. The blonde gulps nervously, trying to get a grip on himself so as to not look any dumber than he is sure he already looks.

"Hmm? I don't think we have. I'd remember a cutie like you. I'm just here visiting some pen pals." Thinking quickly, the net idol continues to spin her web of lies. "I was going to send a postcard to my parents, but didn't know where I could get some stamps. I figured the library would be as good of a place as any to look for some."

"Yeah…you'd think…" Clyde sighs as he swears that the girl blinks at him. "Well, as you can see, the library is a bit of a picker upper and is shut down today. Um…there should be some little stores around campus where you can buy some. Er, who are you pen pals with anyways?"

"Oh, I doubt you'd know them." Chisame chuckles, trying her hardest to look cute to throw off the inquisitive blonde. "A couple of girls from the college…although I have been fibbing a little bit. There was another reason I came here."

"To get a book?" Clyde continues to be befuddled as he stammers on. "Um…well, I'm not a librarian, but I'd be glad to help out a pretty girl like you."

"I'm not getting a book, silly. I came here for you." Chisame grins as she walks towards the entranced blonde, putting an arm around his shoulder. "I was hoping that I could chat with you about magic, Clyde Metro."

The boy instantly lets out a yelp and flings the disguised girl's arm from his shoulder, taking a couple of steps backwards as he does so. Stammering in an attempt to come up with a way to debunk the girl's last statement, Clyde continues to wrack his brain for an excuse.

"M…magic? That's silly, hon. It's nice to see that someone as pretty as you has a healthy imagination though." Clyde laughs aloud, hoping that the girl doesn't pick up on the nervous manner in which he is actually laughing. "Man, that's a good joke! Way to give me a laugh."

"Not a joke at all, Clyde-kun." Chisame pouts, partially due to her charade, partially to the fact that she wasn't able to get Clyde to immediately spill the beans. "I know that you're a wizard. It's OK! Let's just have ourselves a little talk."

The blonde boy gulps in fear, not really sure what to make of this girl. Leaning against a counter and scratching his chin, the blonde tries to think of some way, any way out of his current predicament.

"Aw, where would you get an idea that I know about a silly thing like magic? Seriously now. It was funny at first, but now it's getting kind of dumb. You're barking up the wrong tree…wait a minute, how did you know my name?"

"They told me your name when they sent me." Chisame giggles, making the boy swoon yet again as she does so.

"Who sent you?"

"Er…I'm not supposed to tell you." Chisame finds herself sweat dropping at the other youth's question. Her heart sinks slightly as she notices the skeptical look on the blonde boy's face. "If I told you, you would be in danger…to be honest, I'm in danger too, Clyde-kun!"

Before Clyde can say anything to the cosplaying girl, he finds himself wrapped in her embrace. As she continues to hug the youth, the sweet smile on Chisame's face melts away into a more devious grin.

"_That's it now. Spill it all, idiot. You and that little twerp are both going to pay for what you did to me…"_

Speaking of "that little twerp," Chisame is pulled out of her thoughts at the sound of her name being called. Both her and Clyde looking around in confusion, they notice Negi waving to them from the reception desk several feet away.

"Chisame, there you are! I was worried when you didn't make it into class today." Negi smiles as he approaches the confused boy and the panicking girl. "Wow, you really did get dressed up today, Chisame. Are you and Clyde going on a date or something? I'm happy to see you're stepping out of your shell, but your studies are still important too."

"What are you talking about there, cutie?" Chisame chuckles nervously, hoping to somehow salvage her cover. "I don't think that I know any person named Chisame. I'm just here visiting pen pals!"

"Yeah, I'm thinking you have a case of mistaken identity, Negi." Clyde flashes a confident thumbs up to his small friend, giving the girl some short lived relief until the blonde opens his mouth again. "Besides, it's cool. She knows about the whole magic thing."

"S…She does!?" Negi nearly has a heart attack at the news, much to Clyde's confusion. "Clyde, this is bad! That is another one of my students! Number 25, Chisame Hasegawa!"

"Come on now. Her name is…" Clyde puts a finger to his chin in thought for a few moments, drawing a blank. "You know, you never did give me your name, hon."

"My name? I could have sworn that I gave it to you." Chisame sweat drops at the blonde's question, trying her hardest to come up with a name to continue with her ruse. "Er…my name is…"

"It's Chisame, of course!" Negi shakes his head slightly annoyed before turning to Clyde. "I know that you weren't in class today and neither was she. Have you two been together all day?"

"Chisame…She's the dowdy looking girl that never talks, right?" The blonde mage laughs aloud as he slaps Negi on the back, as the fake smile on Chisame's face begins to melt away into an angry scowl. "I mean, look at her. She's pretty, cute, attractive…I haven't really talked to her enough to evaluate any other redeeming qualities she may have. There's no way that this pretty young lady is the same brooding grouch from your class…"

Frustrated and unable to take anymore, Chisame lets out a scream and grabs a now shocked Clyde by the collar, driving him into a nearby wall. A light turning on in his head as he sees a familiar scowl on the girl's face, Clyde gulps in fear.

"I'll be damned. It is that Chisame girl…um, sorry about the whole 'dowdy' comment."

"Shut it, baka!" The angry look on the net idol's face makes Clyde's decision to follow Chisame's suggestion all the more easier. "You two thought you would use me as a guinea pig for your little 'magical' experiments, did you? Well, now you're going to pay!"

"Negi, erase her mind, would you?"

Negi for his part just raises an eyebrow at the blonde's suggestion, his other eyebrow being raised in shock as Chisame has now diverted her rage towards the small teacher, now pinning him against the wall instead.

"If you even think you are going to use magic to erase my mind, you are dead wrong, sensei!"

"I…I…can't use magic, Chisame."

Chisame, unknowing of Negi's temporary magic probation, lifts the poor teacher higher off the ground in anger.

"Give it up! I know that you two are wizards! I saw everything from last night on my webcam! Your little buddies spilled the beans an…"

Chisame finds herself stopping mid-rant as she hears Clyde muttering angrily to himself now.

"Damnit! It happened again! I hate cameras with a passion! Of all the things to be busted by, a camera! In a dorm room! About as bad as being busted by a camera in a gymnasium! What is with people putting these damn things in places they have no right to be!?"

Clyde stops his muttering long enough as he feels someone staring at him. Sure enough, he looks up and notices Chisame burning a hole through him. Figuring that it worked once before, Clyde reaches into his pocket and pulls out a silver flask. Cautiously walking towards Chisame, the blonde smiles, extending his hand with the flask in it.

"Hey, calm down now Chisame. Would you like a sip of soda, honey?"

The sheepish grin on Clyde's face disappears almost as quickly as the flask is knocked from his hand. Lunging, the blonde manages to catch his flask before it crashes to the ground, although it might have been a better idea to let the drinking object go as Clyde smashes hard into the receptionist's desk in the process.

"Hell no! Considering how well it worked the last time I drank something you made, why the hell would I do it a second time!?"

"Ch…Chisame-san?" Irritated, the girl turns her attention back to the boy she already has in her clutches. "I hate to do this, but if you are so intent on telling everybody about our magic, I'm afraid I'll have to return the favor and tell everybody about your extracurricular activities…Chiu."

Gasping, Chisame releases her death grip on the teacher's collar before dropping to her knees. It is now the cosplay star's turn to be wracked with worry as she ponders over that fate. True, she would get her payback on Negi and Clyde that she feels they deserve, but at what cost? The cost of having her double life exposed, of course.

"_Not good at all…Negi-sensei isn't bluffing. I want my payback, but if I do…Chiu is as good as dead. I won't be able to go anywhere unrecognized! And what's worse…all of those loons in class are going to think I'm just as insane as the rest of them! Chisame, Chiu…it won't matter. Either way, I'm screwed. That's alright though. Play it their way for now. I don't really have much of a choice. Damnit, I hate being stuck like this!"_

As Chisame continues on in her mental dilemma, Negi and Clyde both look at each other confused.

"Hey, is she having a nervous breakdown or something, Negi? She keeps shaking her head like she's in denial or something."

"I'm hoping not, Clyde." Negi shakes his head sadly at the response that his threat has had on the poor girl. "I really didn't want to resort to blackmail, but considering that she wanted to blow our cover, I didn't have much of a choice."

"Hey, I tried erasing her mind with the potion." Clyde smirks slightly before continuing. "Pretty smooth distraction from me to get the potion out, eh? Of course, it would have been nicer if you would be able to actually erase minds right now."

"It's a good thing that I didn't have to cast that spell though, Clyde." Negi strokes his chin as he reminisces. "Poor Asuna certainly had her mishaps when I tried to cast that spell on her."

"No need for spells."

Clyde and Negi are pulled out of their conversation as they look towards a defeated Chisame, trying her hardest to swallow her pride.

"You win…but I want some answers, at least. Considering what happened between us last night, I think that I'm at least owed that."

"Fair enough, Chisame-san." Negi smiles warmly at the girl, who in exchange shoots the boy a half-hearted, half-defeated smile. "Let's head back to the dorms. I'd like to try to avoid having someone else stumble onto our secret…er, no offense."

"Hey, you know if you aren't doing anything tonight Chisame…"

"Not on your life, Clyde."

* * *

**Chapter 13 Preview:** Asuna Kagurazaka, Student Number 8 here! Well, it looks like our little group is getting bigger by the day…at this rate, I honestly don't see why we just don't tell the rest of the class and be done with it. But then again, we're going to need all the help we can get when Negi comes to blows with an old rival. Everybody seems to be busy, but between Negi, myself, Chisame, and Clyde…wait a minute…Clyde's doing what!? At a time like this!? I hate that guy!

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Yeah, I know that compared to my other chapters, this is the shortest since Chapter 1, but the main point didn't really require 6000-plus words. With Chisame unwillingly in tow, how will this effect Fallout? Only one way to find out. As usual, questions, comments, reviews, even flames are welcomed. Kudos to Dark Dragon Dave for the proofread, and stick about for Fallout: Chapter 13. Should be a blast.

_-Midnight_


	13. Date Night & Bite Night: A Vampire Plot

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. Being bankrupt does not sound like the funnest way to usher in a new year.

**Author's Notes:** Welcome back to Fallout! Last chapter, we saw Chisame's investigation end with her biting off more than she wanted to, as she is now in the thick of Negi and Clyde's magic lives. The class also has their Romeo and Juliet play coming up around the corner, so how might this affect the class? Well, only one way to find out! Thanks for all who read and review as usual, and special kudos to Hydriatus for proofreading this chapter. If you haven't already, check out his re-write in progress known as Time is Everything, as it is a good read.

**Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 13**

"Good morning, class!"

"Good morning, Negi-sensei!"

The aforementioned teacher smiles as the class bows in respect before taking their seats. The smile stays on his face as he makes note that the class is somewhat tamer today than usual. Jitters because of their play in a couple of weeks, mayhaps? Clearing his throat, the boy decides to proceed, hoping that the talking he's about to do won't cause any discomfort to his swollen lip. Got to love Ku Fei's training sessions.

"So I take it that everybody is doing fine with memorizing their lines?"

Negi's joy fades ever so slightly as he gauges the class response. Naturally, some of the more diligent students, such as Nodoka, Ayaka, and Konoka have looks of confidence on their faces, others such some of the bakas? Not so much. A couple are even oblivious to Negi's question at the moment, as Makie is in the back of the room kneeling by Yuna's desk playing rock, paper, scissors. After several draws, Yuna finally raises her arms in victory, chuckling sheepishly as she notices the rest of the class looking at her and Makie confused. Makie, for her part yelps and runs back to her desk, sitting down and whistling innocently. Shaking her head in the back of the room, Chisame can't help but have a small smirk on her face.

"_They are so screwed. Thank God I'm just in charge of online promotion. Something that is nice and normal…none of this headache about magic at least."_

"OK, so we're kind of in good shape!" Negi exclaims, trying his best to downplay the fact that the majority of the class hasn't been as good with studying their lines as he hoped. "Murakami-san, Clyde-san. Have you two figured anything out as far as a rehearsal?"

Both of the mentioned students look at each other from across the room and exchange confused shrugs before Clyde gets up from his desk and goes to confer with Natsumi. Negi glances at the clock on the wall as the duo continues their quiet conversation, both of which alternate between calling random students over to the table. After what seems like an eternity to Negi, but is probably only fifteen minutes or so, Clyde stands up with a piece of paper that him and Natsumi were writing on.

"Er…with everybody's various activities, it seems that the only time we would be able to fit a practice in would be the night before the play…quite literally the night before, as our Tybalt is involved in council meetings and our Paris has a martial arts exhibition. The only bad thing is that our three musicians have a gig that night."

"It looks like we're going to have to…improvise." Natsumi gulps, not really fond of the last word that she said. "I suppose…it could be worse, right?"

"Yeah it could be." Clyde beams, trying to cheer his roommate up. "After all, bad things could happen, such as people not memorizing their lines. That would be a let down."

"Don't worry, Clyde-kun! We won't let you down!" Makie cheers as she shoots the boy a thumbs up.

"Play be good. We try hard." Ku Fei offers her confidence.

"Even if the play sucks and we all end up disgraced, we have kick ass sets!" Haruna beams, causing an eerie silence to come across the classroom for a few moments as the majority of the class shoots her a "what the hell?" type of look.

"We're going to make sure this doesn't suck!" Yuna grins.

"I am not going to be embarrassed in front of the entire student body. No way is that going to happen, right?" Ayaka asks the class, shooting a glance straight at Asuna.

"Hey, what's with the glare, Ayaka!?" Asuna barks, obviously none too pleased with the rep's little glare in her direction.

"Nothing at all, monkey girl. I'm just making sure SOME girls don't mess up the entire play!"

"If you keep it up, you aren't even going to make it to the play, blondie!"

"Is that supposed to be a threat?"

"No, it's a guarantee!"

And so, another Asuna VS Ayaka battle begins. Negi, as usual in this situation, is a non-factor as he tries his hardest to break the brawl up while Sakurako begins her favorite class pastime of taking wagers on the ongoing battle. Clyde, remembering full well that he received a couple of painful blows the last time he tried to interfere with the two girls, wisely dives to the floor and crawls under the deserted desks, away from the brawl and the standing crowd of students. The boy is almost to the door when he feels a hand on his shoulder. Quickly turning his head, he notices a smiling Yuna under the desk with him.

"Aw, where you running to, Clyde-kun?" The girl beams, causing Clyde to chuckle nervously.

"I'm getting the hell out of there. I don't feel like getting hit again." The duo winces as they watch on at the brawl in which Ayaka is attempting to escape an Asuna bear hug by yanking at her hair. "Yeesh…"

"Say, while we're here, you mind if I ask you a question?"

"Sorry Yuna. You aren't getting out of the play. You're like the fifth person that's asked me."

"No, not that!" Yuna shakes her head before grinning at the blonde. "I was wondering…you want to maybe hang out tonight?"

"H…H…Hang out?" Clyde stammers, adjusting his necktie and taking a deep breath. "Like a…date?"

"No, not like a date, you dork!" Yuna chuckles, lightly punching the boy in the arm. "Consider it a thank you for saving me the other day."

"Saving you?" Clyde shakes his head in response. "There wasn't any danger, remember?"

"Yeah, but it's the thought that counts. C'mon, I'll buy you a burger or something, show you around the campus without ten different people pointing out different things. You can tell me all about Balti…less?"

"Baltimore." Clyde corrects the basketball star. "And to tell you the truth, I was only there for about six months or so. That was mainly just a cover so me and Negi didn't have to explain a lot of things."

"Well, whatever. You're going and that's that. Of course…" Yuna pouts slightly before continuing. "…if you didn't want to go, I would sure hate to tell my daddy that you left me heartbroken."

Clyde gulps, not really feeling like dealing with an angry father, especially one that he knows from his dealings in Mahora is a mage. After the unpleasant image of Professor Akashi coming after him is cleared from his mind, Clyde's look of fear turns to a smile.

"Er, sounds great! How about seven?"

"Awesome! Eh?"

Yuna's happiness is short lived, however as Clyde is yanked from under the desk by a trio of smiling girls. Looking about, Clyde recognizes them as the cheerleader trio.

"Aw, so Clyde-kun has a date?" Misa giggles. "Well, do you have anything to wear?"

"Not really…and it's not a date!"

"Whatever you say." Madoka chuckles. "Don't worry though., Clyde-kun. Misa knows what she's doing."

"It really isn't!" Clyde protests and tries to get away from the trio, but to no avail.

"Wish I would have asked before her, but it can't be helped." Sakurako pouts as she grabs Clyde's legs. The blonde thinks of saying something, but sighs in defeat, letting the cheerleader trio drag him out of the classroom as the bell rings, wondering just how in the hell they pulled themselves away from the brawl long enough to delve into his personal affairs.

* * *

"So you and Yuna are officially an item, huh?" 

"No, we aren't, Kazumi!" Clyde whines as the mentioned paparazzo snickers. "Why does everybody keep assuming that?"

Asakura for her part just snickers yet again, not offering the blonde any help as she leans against the closet door in his dorm. The girl can't help but laugh even louder as she hears the boy try to get dressed in what is apparently a lack of space. Eventually she hears a tapping at the door and steps out of the way, causing Clyde to crash through the now opened door onto the floor.

"Real graceful there, Clyde-kun! I'm sure you two lovebirds are going to have a good time!"

Clyde opts to say something in response, but finds himself cut off by the knocking at his dorm door. Shooting a non-threatening glare at the laughing redhead, Clyde opens the door and lets a smiling Negi inside. The smile on the boy's face gives way into confusion as he looks at Clyde, sporting black shoes, blue jeans, and a gray T-shirt.

"Wow, nice clothes there, Clyde. So, you're getting paid for helping clean up the library?"

"Yeah, I wish." Clyde scoffs before continuing. "Yuna and I are going to grab a burger later on, and for whatever reason, your little cheerleader triad abducted me and took me clothes shopping. I got to tell you, the purple haired girl…Misa, my bad. Anyways, Misa seems to enjoy playing dress up."

"Yeah…" Negi nods in agreement, knowing full well about Misa's little hobby from personal experience.

"So where are you two going on your date?" Asakura chips in yet again, much to the blonde's chagrin.

"It's not a date!" Clyde whines, not sure if the reporter is dense or is just trying to irk him. "She just wanted to show me around and grab something to eat! Is that a crime?"

"Well, it depends on what you two are going to do after that."

Sighing in defeat, Clyde throws his arms up in frustration before exiting the dorm, leaving a still chuckling Asakura and a very confused Negi in his wake. Adjusting his specs, Negi turns to the jovial reporter and shrugs.

"Uh…did I miss something?"

"When you're a little older, you'll understand." Asakura assures the boy, patting him on the head as she does so. "I know it isn't a date, it's just that it seemed like it would be a boring day if I didn't harass Clyde."

* * *

A few hours later and Clyde finds himself pacing in front of the school. After nearly wearing a circle in the concrete walkway, the blonde opts to take a seat on the stairs. Looking at his watch, he notes the time; 7:15pm. Muttering profanities to himself about how he could have spent the time figuring out how to make the class' play not be a bust, Clyde gets to his feet and is about to leave when he feels a hand fall hard onto his shoulder. Letting out a not-so-manly yelp, the blonde quickly pivots about to see a smirking Yuna behind him. 

"Hiya, Clyde-kun! Sorry I'm late!" The girl laughs as Clyde takes in deep breaths, taking the opportunity to adjust the duffel bag slung over her shoulder. "Practice ran a little late today. So, what should we do first?"

Clyde scratches his chin for a moment as he ponders. "How about that burger? Haven't had time to get anything to eat yet."

"Yeah, no problem. I could go for some chow too." Yuna motions to Clyde to follow her before turning back around after a couple of feet. "Nice duds, by the way."

"Thanks!" Clyde chuckles nervously before noticing just what Yuna was wearing: faded blue jeans, black tank top, and what he can swear looks like trace amounts of eye liner and lipstick. "Er, you too."

And so the duo sets off, ready to face whatever fate may have for them tonight. Unknown to either of the youths, they aren't exactly alone on this night as from the shadows, a chuckling ermine sits atop a certain net idol's head smoking a cigarette.

"Can you tell me why we have to watch this again!?" Chisame harshly whispers to her companion. "I really don't want to be here. I could be updating my web page or sleeping."

"Oh, calm down there, sweetheart." Chamo chuckles as he takes a drag. "There's just something I want to check out from these two."

"I don't want to see these two kiss or do anything else that would go along with that, you perverted weasel!" Chisame's voice naturally is a little louder this time around, the girl clasping a hand over her mouth out of fear that she will be overheard.

"Oh come on. It'll be good for you, Chiu." The ermine chuckles as he feels the girl he is sitting on top of slump down in depression at the last word spoken. "Besides, you're helping me by carrying me around, I'm helping you by not being near a computer where Chiu's secret might get spilled…"

"OK, OK, I get it." The net idol huffs, not really thrilled about being blackmailed by a talking ermine, before muttering to herself quietly.

"How in the hell does an ermine know how to work a computer, or talk, or smoke for that matter?"

* * *

_**Meanwhile**_

* * *

"So how is the other eye doing?" 

Negi can't help but let out a chuckle as he glances up towards Asuna as the duo walks from one of the many wooded areas around the academy.

"Doesn't feel as bad as it looks though." Negi flips the slightly worried girl a thumbs up as they continue their journey. "I told Master Fei not to take it easy on me even though I don't have my magic."

"Hey, I'm proud of you, Negi." Asuna laughs before continuing. "Even though of all the bumps and bruises you've gotten so far, none of them have come from actual fighting."

"Hey, Master Fei says that you have to crawl before you walk." Negi nods as he reminisces. "If I can't avoid simple logs right now, how am I going to avoid direct fists, right?"

"Yeah, I see her point, but…"

Asuna trails off from her thoughts and comes to an eventual stop, as does Negi as they notice something peculiar a hundred feet or so in front of them. Namely, a tall human-shaped object coming at the duo at quite a rapid speed. The two manage to duck out of the way just in time, watching as whatever it was comes to an abrupt halt a few feet behind them. The duo have similar looks of shock on their face as they are now able to recognize their assailant; Chachamaru. Before either youth can say anything, they find themselves diving out of the way for a second time as an icy blast drops down from above.

"Hmm…I see that you can still dodge without your magic, at least."

Asuna and Negi both look to the sky to see what at this point isn't much of a surprise for them; Evangeline slowly descending to the ground. After adjusting her black cloak, the short-but-deadly vampire smirks at the duo.

"If I were you, Negi Springfield, I would be afraid. No magic and only one partner who is equally as powerless without a pactio…your father would have never let himself be put into such a fatal situation."

"Evangeline!" Asuna shouts out, none too pleased about the vampire's little ambush. "What the hell are you trying to pull here!?"

"Nothing that concerns you, Asuna Kagurazaka." Eva hardly pays the angered redhead any attention before turning back to Negi. "But what I'm trying to pull is taking poor Negi-sensei here and draining him of life's blood. But I suppose if you want to stick around, you and Chachamaru can play."

With a snap of her fingers, Chachamaru springs to action, driving an elbow into Asuna's right arm, the redhead's quick reaction time being the only thing saving her from receiving the blow in the center of her back. Clutching her right bicep in pain, Asuna is somehow able to see the roundhouse kick coming from the android and duck it, following up with a sweep kick of her own. As Chachamaru is tripped to the ground, Asuna gets to her feet and attempts to drop a knee into the robotic girl's midsection, narrowly missing as her intended target rolls out of the way.

"Combat level is determined. Preparing melee defenses accordingly."

As Chachamaru and Asuna continue their fight, Negi puts what little training he has gotten from Ku Fei thus far to good use, managing to dodge the icy daggers that Evangeline continues to cast at him. Eva for her part just chuckles and smirks with each miss, knowing that the boy will run out of stamina eventually, especially with no magic to aid him. Sure enough, eventually Negi begins to tire and immediately pays for it as he is nicked by one of the vampire's blasts, causing a sharp numbing sensation to flow through his left shoulder.

"Running away isn't going to save you for much longer!" Eva taunts as she walks closer to her target, fangs bared as her smirk grows. "Show some backbone and at least try to put up a fight!"

"_Why is she doing this? This isn't right. It isn't the full moon…"_

Almost as soon as he thinks on the words "full moon," Negi mentally curses himself. The boy glances at the sky, and sure enough, notices the full moon staring back right at him.

"_Oh no! I must have spent so much time helping with the Cultural Festival and our class' play that I completely forgot about tonight! Stupid Negi! What can I do? Wait a minute! That's it!"_

* * *

"Two burgers, two fries, and two medium colas, please." 

"Right away, miss."

Yuna giggles as she nods to the cashier and sits down at a table across from Clyde.

"I thought you were just kidding about there being a burger joint." Clyde chuckles as he leans back in his chair. "Nice little surprise."

"Are you kidding? If you want it, odds are they have it around Mahora." Yuna smirks before continuing. "Almost like it was magic, eh?"

As the girl flashes him a thumbs up, Clyde nods in response before seemingly zoning out.

"_Clyde! Can you hear me!?"_

Sighing in frustration, Clyde quickly decides that the best idea would be to answer Negi, as he figures that he wouldn't get any peace if he doesn't.

"_What is it Negi? I'm busy right now."_

"_Sorry for interrupting your date…"_

"_Damnit, it isn't a date! Can't a guy and beautiful girl go out and get something to eat and not be considered an item?"_

"_Whatever! I really could use some help right now!"_

"_Help with what?"_

It's at about that time that Clyde notices that instead of sitting across from him, Yuna is now sitting next to him, leaning her head on Clyde's shoulder. Blinking in confusion, Clyde can't help but unintentionally tune Negi out. Only remembering the word "fight" from Negi's last telepathic text, the blonde is only able to give the younger mage half assed advice.

"_Hey, if you're in a fight, try using the card for something other than talking to me. Just because your magic is sealed doesn't mean that mine is, right? Go get 'em, tiger!"_

"Order number 117!"

"That'd be us. I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere, k?" Yuna giggles as she gets up from her chair, putting her index finger on Clyde's nose and winking before she goes to retrieve the duo's dinner.

"_What in the hell? This isn't a date…is it? I don't think so anyways."_

Meanwhile, in a booth in the corner of the restaurant, Chisame watches the entire spectacle with a look of disgust on her face. Chamo, peeking out from the girl's vest just chuckles in anticipation.

"Can we go yet? I really don't feel like watching them feed each other french fries or whatever the hell they're going to do."

"Oh, come on, Ane-san." Chamo snickers from his hiding spot. "Just think of it like watching one of those sappy romance movies firsthand."

"Chamo, I hate those sappy romance movies!" The net idol complains, making sure to turn her head the other direction whenever it seems that either Clyde or Yuna look in her direction. "I've got better things to do than this!"

"Oh, I get it. You're jealous." Chamo's laughter picks up as he feels the girl's body tense up at the accusation. "Hey, don't worry. Even if you did lose Clyde there, Aniki is still available. You might want to hurry and act though. He's a pretty hot commodity…"

The ermine looks up and instantly takes note of the death glare that is being shot his way by Chisame. Chuckling nervously, Chamo works to diffuse the situation.

"Or flying solo is fine for now, I guess. You're young. There's still plenty of time! Don't give up hope!"

All Chisame can do is let out a frustrated sigh and take a sip of her soda, trying her hardest not to do anything that would put her on PETA's public enemy list.

* * *

"Right. Use the card…" Negi mutters under his breath as he sidesteps a slash attempt from Evangeline's razor sharp fingernails. The boy follows up his first dodge with a back flip out of the way of Eva's offhand. The vampire can't help but let out an amused chuckle as she continues advancing towards her prey. Meanwhile, in a slight panic, Negi feverously feels about his pockets, attempting to find his pactio card. Finally, the boy is successful in finding said card, quickly pulling it from his pants pocket and looking at it with a look of disbelief before uttering a single word. 

"Adeat!"

Sure enough, the card springs to action, disappearing in a blinding white light and leaving Negi wearing a black cowboy hat, neckerchief around his lower face, a gun belt sporting two jet black revolvers, and cowboy boots with spurs. Evangeline isn't able to contain herself, staring at the suit/cowboy combination in front of her and immediately begins laughing.

"Oh, that's great! Nice outfit there, kiddo! Tell me, that would be a present from that baka Observer, wouldn't it?" The vampire actually has to temporarily stop her assault to collect herself. "I've been around for a long time, but I have to say, that is one ridiculous outfit that certainly is near the top of the list!"

Slightly embarrassed and even more confused, Negi reaches to his hips and draws both of the revolvers from their holsters. Shocked at how light they are given their size, the boy raises the brim of his hat and takes aim at a still chuckling Evangeline.

"Oh, now he's going to shoot me? Go ahead and fire away, little boy! This just might make our little battle interesting before I kill you."

Negi, not really too fond of having to put up with the vampire's insults, smirks as he squeezes the trigger on the revolver in his left hand. Almost instantly, a blue spherical blast comparable to the size of a bowling ball fires from the magic gun. Caught off guard by the attack, Evangeline is barely able to more out of the blast's way, magically incinerating the bottom of the vampire's cloak. Asuna and Chachamaru even take a brief break in their fighting and note the power of Negi's newfound toy. Not wanting to waste the opportunity to take the offensive, Negi lets fire with the right revolver, this one firing a reddish-orange bolt of magic energy. Eva isn't as lucky with dodging this shot, however, as it catches her square in the abdomen. Half happy he made the hit, half worried for the girl's well being, Negi quickly pursues his opponent to gauge the damage. When he makes it the thirty or so feet that the girl traveled, much to his surprise he finds the vampire on her feet, although she is slightly singed. Wiping a smudge of mud from her cheek, Eva dusts herself off the best she can before walking towards Negi, smiling the whole while, but Negi knowing from personal experiences that odds are she isn't too pleased at the moment.

Meanwhile, Chachamaru and Asuna's battle has continued yet again, with Chachamaru having a slight edge over her pactio-less foe. Cursing to herself, Asuna picks herself up from a kneeled position and charges at her android foe, managing to land a clothesline to little success as Chachamaru uses her momentum of falling backwards to land a flip kick before landing on her feet. After said maneuver, Asuna finds herself on the ground again, this time a trickle of blood coming from her nose. Wracking her brain for a weakness in her opponent, Asuna's strategy time comes to an end as she is forced to combat roll out of the way of a sliding kick from Chachamaru.

"_Come on Asuna! You have to think of something or you're going to get killed!"_

Asuna quickly scrambles to her feet, ready to battle once again. Without warning, a puff of smoke explodes from Chachamaru's left wrist. Much to Asuna's horror, she finds a cuff around her right wrist with a cord connecting the cuff to the android's wrist, about ten feet or so to work with for either combatant.

"Target's range of movement has been drastically decreased. Now resuming offense…Sorry, Asuna-san."

Naturally, Chachamaru's apology loses it's weight with Asuna as she is promptly yanked towards the android, taking a swift knee in the midsection for her troubles. Kneeled over, the girl gets an idea and quickly acts, taking in as much air as she can to replace what was just knocked out of her lungs before acting. Purposely letting Chachamaru advance closer to her, Asuna uses those extra few feet of flexible cord to her advantage by wrapping said cord around her legs after blocking a sweep kick from the android. Running on pure adrenaline, the redhead has soon completed a few passes around the now-stationary android's legs before giving her a swift roundhouse and pulling on the cord simultaneously, causing Chachamaru to crash to the ground. Asuna's smirk from grounding the android is short lived, however, as she sees Chachamaru shaking her head as if to say "no." A moment later, an electrical shock runs through the cord connecting the duo, dropping Asuna to the ground in pain.

"Asuna!" Negi reacts the girl's pained screams and rushes to her aid…at the cost of forgetting his little ongoing battle with Evangeline, who haphazardly tossing a pair of vials, causes an explosion right under where Negi was running a moment before he is blown into the air. Landing in a heap and writhing in pain, Negi finds himself pinned to the ground by the small vampire. No match without his magic and with him having his magic revolvers knocked from his grasp by the explosion, all the teacher can do is wince in pain as the smiling vampire inches closer and closer to his neck. Hyperventilating due to seeing his short life flash before his eyes, Negi pinches his eyes closed as he feels the tips of Eva's fangs on his neck. And then…

* * *

After the duo finishes their meal, Clyde and Yuna find themselves wandering about the campus, with the basketball ace pointing out various things of interest. Whereas Yuna is cheery and quick to speak, Clyde for his part is sweat dropping the whole time, not being helped at all by the bear hug that Yuna is putting on his left arm. The blonde takes a large breath, drawing the girl's attention. 

"Geez, you OK?" Yuna lets go of the youth's arm long enough to put a hand to his forehead. "Man, you're all sweaty and red faced. Allergic to french fries or something?"

"Ah, it's nothing." Clyde tries to downplay the girl's concern before coming up with possibly the lamest excuse of the year. "It's just that it's a little warm…yeah! It's warm."

"Really? Don't know why, but to me it seems cold." Clyde is taken aback by the girl's statement, even more so as she wraps her arms around him in an embrace. "That's better."

"Sure…whatever floats your boat." Clyde manages to stop sweating and being red faced long enough to ask the basketball girl a question. "You sure that you're OK yourself? You seem to be acting a little odd, Yuna."

"Odd? I'm sorry Clyde-kun. It's just that…" Yuna pauses, seemingly thinking of what she is going to say next. "…it's just that I really like you. I mean, it isn't like I can say anyone else took a bullet for me. And before you say anything, I'll say it again. It's the thought that counts."

Clyde blinks in confusion, not really sure how to respond to the girl who is currently clinging to his chest. He finds himself trying to speak several times with no success each time. Yuna seems to pick up on it and puts her right arm around Clyde's neck, pulling his face dangerously close to her own.

"No need for words, Clyde-kun."

The look of nervousness on Clyde's face only increases as their two faces grow closer and closer. Finally, "close enough" finally happens as Clyde and Yuna's lips connect. And then…

* * *

Negi opens his eyes, fully expecting to find himself on another plane of existence. Much to the boy's surprise, he finds himself staring up at the night sky with a snickering vampire sitting on his chest. More importantly to Negi, a snickering vampire that has no traces of Negi's blood on her mouth. Quickly, Negi feels to his neck, both relieved and confused that he doesn't find any blood or even any puncture marks. Eva is able to stop her laughter long enough to speak to the confused youth. 

"Relax, I'm not going to bite into your neck." Eva pauses briefly before continuing. "Even without magic, you showed some impressive resilience there, boya."

Recognizing the vampire's tone, a big smile breaks out over Negi's face as he scrambles to his feet, taking the vampire that was perched on top of him by surprise.

"Master…er, Evangeline-san! You remember!? That means that Clyde's potion wore off!"

The small vampire laughs at Negi's comment, shaking her head before responding.

"You mean that spiked punch at that little party? Please. It would take magic stronger than that to do anything to me. Really now, I'm a little disappointed that you were so gullible. I've been faking amnesia this whole time, boya, plain and simple."

"Faking amnesia?" Negi blinks a couple of times at Eva's revelation before turning to a look of mixed shock and anger. "Why in the world would you do something like that!?"

"Well, for starters, I thought it would be a good source of entertainment for me to play along with that Observer's little stunt. And from the reactions you had, it was entertaining. A few days after that little incident, knowing that the full moon was fast approaching, I decided to continue with the charade to test you when I had my powers returned to me. I wasn't planning on you having your magic sealed, but hey, you managed just fine without it…this time anyways."

"Why didn't you just tell me in the first place!" Negi exclaims in frustration, that look being replaced by one of fear as Eva scowls at him.

"Please. If I would have told you we were going to have a sparring session, you would have just half assed it. In order for me to get the best I could out of you, I needed you to think that your life was going to be in danger. Hence, that little Observer wound up helping me more than I ever thought he would."

Negi nods in understanding, still not quite thrilled with being duped for the last several days. Suddenly, his mind turns to something else.

"Asuna!"

The youth quickly glances over to where Asuna and Chachamaru were battling and looks relieved as she sees the android helping the red headed papergirl warrior to her feet, offering her a cloth from her vest pocket to wipe the blood from her face. After gazing at Asuna for several seconds, Chachamaru nods.

"No internal injuries detected. Sorry for the deception, Asuna-san." Chachamaru bows and walks towards Eva and Negi, stopping several feet short and turning back to Asuna. "Your battle skills have improved, even without your artifact. Good job."

"Deception?" Asuna ponders, stumbling over towards the group as she wipes the blood trail from her nose. "This whole thing was a deception?"

"Of course it was, Kagurazaka." Eva huffs, the smirk on her face still very much alive and present. "Why do you think that I was able to attack you two in the open like this without any worry of interference. Before I set out tonight, I let all your little friends know what was going on. Even Takahata knew. The only ones that weren't in the dark were you two and that Observer…Clyde, right? I don't care enough to memorize his name, to be honest."

Eva lets out a loud laugh, taking Asuna and Negi aback for a moment. Shaking her head and still chuckling, Eva lets the cat out of the bag.

"Speaking of him, I wonder how he's enjoying his little setup date."

"Setup date?" Negi scratches the back of his head in confusion.

"That's what those two blabbering sports girls were playing that idiotic game for this morning." Eva points out. "When I heard that they were seeing who was going to give Clyde a more personal tour, I decided to use that as a means to keep the Observer from interfering in your little test…by the way, you lose points for not dispelling the control I have over those sports girls. But don't worry, I didn't make her do anything indecent…well, unless you consider a kiss to be indecent anyways. Speaking of which, it looks like my puppet has served it's purpose and can stop dancing."

* * *

Clyde, despite being in the middle of a lip lock manages to let out a gasp as Yuna moves her other arm from around Clyde's chest to the other side of his neck. The only sound the blonde is able to hear in the dead night air is the sound of his heart beating at a considerably quicker pace than it was minutes ago. Not really wanting to be one to complain, Clyde decides to not panic and ask questions when the girl lets go of him. Unfortunately for Clyde, the kiss is broken up, but not by either him or Yuna, but rather by a cackling electricity coming from Yuna's lips. In the split second after the electricity forms, Clyde finds himself about fifteen feet away from the girl, smoke rising from his form and his back and neck not exactly feeling the best as he is now seated up against a tree that broke his fall. Writhing in pain, Clyde manages to look up at the basketball girl who is now looking at him with a look of confusion etched on her face. 

"Clyde-kun! Er…what exactly are you doing over there?"

"Oh…just sitting down." Clyde truthfully says, confused as to why Yuna is asking him that particular question when she was a firsthand witness as to why he is in the spot he is now. "You don't remember?"

"Remember what?" The girl asks, smirking the whole time. "I kind of remember going to the burger joint and eating, and then walking around for a while…it's kind of fuzzy to tell the truth. You sure you're OK? You look a little beat up there."

Clyde thinks of telling Yuna about what happened, but opts against it for the time being, especially since he himself isn't exactly sure about what happened. "Er…I'm fine! I think it's just a small bout of food poisoning or so. Nothing to worry about."

"Food poisoning…" Yuna ponders over the boy's answer before responding herself, a look of slight worry on her face. "Maybe that's why my head seems so foggy. I think I should probably go back to the dorms and lie down or something. You want to walk back with me?"

"Ah, you go ahead…I think I'm just going to sit here for awhile. I'll be fine."

"OK…" Yuna nods, grinning at Clyde. "Thanks for hanging out with me though, Clyde-kun! The parts I remember were really fun! Good night!"

"Good night, Yuna."

The blonde haired mage watches as the girl takes her leave, using the tree he is leaning on to help prop himself to his feet as Yuna disappears into the shadows of the buildings. Battered and obviously not thinking clearly enough to try to use pactio telepathy, Clyde hobbles off in an attempt to find Negi. After a few feet, the youth reaches into his left jeans pocket and pulls out a small vial with a red liquid in it. After chugging the small vial, the blonde cracks his neck and continues his journey, the limp in his walk becoming less and less obvious before it disappears altogether. As the boy continues on his journey, he feels a hand fall onto his shoulder. Quickly spinning around, he sees a frustrated looking Chisame glaring at him and a beaming Chamo perched on her shoulder flipping the boy double thumbs up.

"Oh, hey guys. What are you two up to?"

"Well, this little vermin has been blackmailing me all night into following you around on your date." Chisame bluntly states, making the ermine on her shoulder face fault in response.

"It wasn't a date…and wait a minute. You guys were spying on me? Why?"

Clyde's expression turns from one of slight disappointment to one of slight rage as he glares at the ermine on top of the net idol's shoulder. Simultaneously, Chisame herself turns her attention to Chamo as well.

"Yes, Chamo. Do tell us why you had to waste my night following this idiot around, wouldn't you? What was it you wanted to see?"

"Heh…an experiment, Ane-san." Chamo takes the opportunity to fire up a cigarette before going on with his speech, causing Chisame to flick him from her shoulder, not really wanting to have the small creature blow smoke into her face.

"OK, I'll smoke over here then. Anyways, Clyde, as you know, all of the girls in Aniki's class have a pactio with him right?"

"Yeah." Clyde nods, not really sure where Chamo is going with this train of thought. "…And?"

"Well, most of the time, most temporary pactios don't prevent a ministra from having different partners as they are just that; temporary. Well, being the considerate ermine that I am, I decided to give Aniki a little extra insurance to make sure that he was able to keep his pactios until he deemed on a permanent one. Hence, when I whip up my little magic circles, I add a couple of little things, as a measure of warding for any mage who might think of moving in on Negi's prospects. A mage goes and kisses one of Aniki's partners and they get a little warning jolt."

"So…what you're telling me is that every time I get smooched, I get fried like that?" Clyde asks, his eyebrow slightly twitching. "Considering half of the girls in the class come on a little strong, you're saying that every time one of them tries to give me a little peck or anything that I'm going to get electrocuted? Does that bring up the amnesia that Yuna had too then afterwards?"

"Well, no. That little bit was from Evangeline controlling Yuna as a means of distracting you while she tested Aniki." Clyde's jaw drops at the ermine's revelation. "That's why she was being overly clingy half the time. Oh, don't be mad, Clyde! Look on the bright side."

"…And that is?"

"If you would have tried to form a pactio with Yuna, the electrocution would have probably been a little more painful. Same thing too if Aniki's magic wasn't sealed right now. You got off pretty lucky."

"So this whole night was a bust?"

"Well, yes and no. From what I did tell, Yuna does kind of like you, partially hypnotized or not. I've been around the block, Clyde. Trust me, I know these things!"

"Gee, I feel so great...well then, there's only one thing to do then." Clyde cracks his knuckles as he walks slowly towards the already nervously backpedaling ermine.

"…Er, and that is?"

"What the hell did you have to use me as a guinea pig for!?" Clyde finally loses his composure and chases after the now fleeing magical creature. "Get back here!"

Chisame for her part has a similar idea and chases after the ermine herself.

"Chamo! You made me sit through an entire night just for a stupid little experiment like that!? What the hell is wrong with you!?"

The ermine doesn't offer up any answers; instead he continues fleeing, not really looking forward to being beaten by a pair of frustrated teenagers.

"_Oh well. You win some, you lose some. I wonder how Aniki's little test turned out anyways…"_

* * *

"You did what!?" Negi asks in disbelief, apparently none to pleased over Eva's little stunt. "You just can't take over a person's free will!" 

"Oh, calm down boya." Eva shakes her head before continuing. "She's been making goo goo eyes at him as well as half the rest of that class. I've been stuck here long enough to know what that look means. Fifteen plus years will do that for you. I was just doing the girl a favor. Plus, I consider it payback on both of them: Clyde for his little spiking the punch trick, which led to the worst punch I've ever tasted, and Akashi for making me have to drink the worst punch I've ever tasted. And besides, nothing bad would have happened. That little white rat of yours was watching them."

"Well, that makes me feel so much better." Negi rolls his eyes, knowing that Chamo would probably add to any problems with Yuna and Clyde rather than help them. "So she's fine then?"

"Oh yeah…probably. She doesn't remember half the night probably, but she'll get over it." Eva pauses for a moment, looking up to the full moon before glancing back at the slightly battered teacher, walking towards him.

"Negi, when you get your magic back, come seek me out. We'll continue your training. Keep it up with the martial arts though. You need to do something to keep yourself in shape, especially when you're training with me again."

"Y…Yes, Master!" Negi bows in respect before laughing. "You know, I have to say, you did a great job of playing your charade. I really did think my life was in dan…aah!"

Negi quickly looks down to his right arm in pained shock to see Evangeline biting into his forearm. After a few seconds the vampire releases her grasp and wipes the excess blood from her mouth, licking her fingertips afterwards.

"Hmm? Who said your life wasn't in danger? If you would have died in that little exchange, you would've proven that you didn't deserve to be my disciple."

"Master! You said you weren't going to bite me!" Negi complains, looking down at the trickles of blood coming from his newfound puncture wounds.

"No." Evangeline is quick to correct the young boy. "I said I wasn't going to bite into your neck. I didn't say anything about not biting into your arm…consider it a payment for today's lesson, boya. Chachamaru! Let's go!"

"Yes, Master." The android turns to follow the walking away Evangeline before turning back to Negi and Asuna.

"Good night, Negi-sensei, Asuna-san. Sorry for any discomfort I may have caused."

"Chachamaru! There's no need to apologize to them! We're leaving!"

The android bows to the two youths before following her master's leave. Asuna and Negi just look at each other for a few moments afterwards before smiling at each other.

"Hey, kiddo. Even without magic, we make one hell of a team."

"Yes, Asuna. We sure do."

* * *

**Chapter 14 Preview:** Oh? Hello there! Student 28, Natsumi Murakami, actress and director right here! Well, it looks as though our class is ready to perform what we have put all our time and energy into! Sure, we only had two weeks…and several people don't know their lines…and some of the casting might lead to complications…but we'll be fine, right? I'm hoping so anyways. Ad-libbing…we can avoid doing that…right?

* * *

**The Stat Line:** Started 1/2/08, Finished 1/8/08 Posted 1/10/08 11:06 p.m.

**The Follow Up: **First off, I finally figured out a consistent for my chapter endings. Yeah, big news, I know. Alert the media. With another chapter of Fallout in the books, a thought comes to mind: Will poor Clyde ever win? I'm the writer of this little show and even I'm starting to feel a little bad for the poor guy. Maybe he should be wary of tanktop wearing girls, as bad things tend to happen to him in those cases...speaking of his magically sabotaged "date," if anybody isn't sure what Evangeline's little punch remark was about, I'd suggest re-reading over Chapter 1. Hell, I had to do that to see who would be Eva's distraction for this chapter as it's been quite a while. As usual, reviews are accepted and appreciated, even flames are accepted. Feedback is feedback, good or bad. So long for now and I'll see you soon with Chapter 14, which will finally usher in 3-A's much talked about play. Should be a blast.

_-Midnight_


	14. Romeo & Juliet: Definitely A Tragedy

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. Let's make sure that the only tragedy happening is in the Romeo and Juliet play that Negi and Co. are running, shall we? Speaking of which, I don't own jack as far as Romeo and Juliet goes either, so yeah.

**Author's Notes:** My, oh my! How the time flies! I can't believe that it has already been one year since Fallout started. Was hoping to be a little further along in the story than I am, but hey, so far I think it's turned out pretty good. Anyways, enough about Fallout's birthday for now. The night is finally here! Romeo and Juliet, as only class 3-A can present! That being said, anybody expecting a nice, normal, accurate portrayal of Romeo and Juliet is probably better suited to go ahead and not read this chapter. Those who are wanting to see just how interesting the class can make this play, feel free to stick around. This being a special occasion, I thought it would be an interesting idea to put in some OC cameos. As far as cameos go, that list will be at the end of the chapter, so as to maybe preserve a shard of surprise. And so, without further ado, enjoy.

**The Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 14

* * *

**

Backstage in Mahora's auditorium, the entire area is abuzz with the energy of thirty-some odd youths. Wardrobe? Check. The sets? Check. Lines memorized? …hopefully. At least those are the thoughts going through the minds of play director Natsumi Murakami and stage manager Clyde Metro. As the aforementioned girl goes over parts in the play with some of her stars, the aforementioned boy is over speaking with a certain smirking janitor who is glancing at the blonde's clipboard.

_**Main Cast of Romeo and Juliet**_

_Director- Natsumi Murakami_

_Stage Manager/Narrator-Clyde Metro_

_Prince of Verona - Akira Okochi_

_Count Paris - Ku Fei_

_Lord Montague - Konoka Konoe_

_Lord Capulet - Yuna Akashi_

_Romeo - Negi Springfield_

_Benvolio - Evangeline A.K. McDowell_

_Mercutio - Asuna Kagurazaka_

_Tybalt - Ayaka Yukihiro_

_Friar Lawrence - Makie Sasaki_

_Three Musicians - Misa Kakizaki, Sakurako Shiina, Madoka Kugimiya_

_Lady Montague - Setsuna Sakurazaki_

_Lady Capulet - Ako Izumi_

_Juliet - Nodoka Miyazaki_

_Nurse - Haruna Saotome_

_Apothecary- Yue Ayase_

_Extras - Kazumi Asakura, Misora Kasuga, Chachamaru Karakuri, Mana Tatsumiya, Kaede Nagase, Chizuru Naba, Fuka and Fumika Narutaki, Satsuki Yotsuba, Zazie Rainyday_

_Effects/Lighting- Chao Lingshen, Satomi Hakase_

_Set Design- Haruna Saotome_

_Promotion-Chisame Hasegawa_

"Thirty minutes to show time, eh Mr. Stage Manager?" Barry chuckles, handing the board back to Clyde. "How'd your practice go last night anyways?"

"It was…interesting…" Clyde shakes his head as he reminisces. "Yeah, interesting is a good word to use."

"That bad, huh?" Barry smirks at his frustrated co-worker. "Well, better to have a little practice in than going cold turkey, right?"

"I suppose so, but I still think we're going to wind up tanking…such a shame considering the packed house out there. Who'd think that a simple English play would garner so much attention."

"Hey, plays like the one you are doing don't happen around here that often, so what do you expect? Plus…" Barry smiles at the boy before continuing. "You and Negi-sensei are a pretty good draw for the play. You for all the girls that have seen you around the school and Negi-sensei because…well, there's a lot of reasons: cuteness, seen around school, crushes, you get the idea."

Clyde raises an eyebrow at the janitor and tries to ask him something, but is cut off at the pass.

"Hey, janitors tend to blend in with the background." Barry shrugs in tune with his statement. "It isn't my fault people don't notice the cleaning guy. You should be getting the troops ready though now, shouldn't you?"

"Yeah, probably…by the way, thanks for unlocking the auditorium for us last night…we definitely needed the dry run."

"No problem, Clyde. Now go put on a good show. I'll be watching."

Clyde and Barry exchange thumbs up as the janitor takes his leave, presumably to his seat. The blonde, meanwhile, looks up at the clock on the wall and takes in a deep breath before turning towards the anxious cast.

"Ten minutes, ladies and gentleman! Let's do this thing!"

* * *

"Have at thee, knave!" 

And so, the battle between the Montagues and the Capulets begins. Clyde and Natsumi exchange slightly optimistic looks as it has been 15 seconds thus far and nothing bad has happened. But as the battle between the families continues, the duo in charge notices something strange: that being one of the members of the Montagues played by Chizuru is getting a little overzealous in her attack on one of the Capulets, being portrayed by Satsuki.

"Brace thyself, Capulet scum!" Chizuru grins as she takes a swing at the chef with her plastic sword. Satsuki for her part keeps backpedaling, blocking whatever blows she can from her well endowed foe. Natsumi and Clyde look at each other in shock.

"Well, you did tell her to act her part." Clyde shrugs, much to the director's chagrin.

"Yeah, but Chizu-ne is going all overkill at it." Natsumi whispers, her eyes widening at the spectacle of Chizuru crashing through two of her fellow Montagues, Fuka and Fumika, causing Fuka to drop her sword and Fumika's to go flying into the front row. Sure enough, both girls reach for the sword simultaneously, sparking off the sibling rivalry.

"Come on!" Fumika complains. "Give me my sword! I need to keep fighting!"

"I lost mine and need yours!" Fuka huffs. "Besides, haven't you heard of respecting your elders!?"

"There you go again, lording it over me! By how many minutes!?"

"Doesn't matter!"

Clyde and Natsumi both watch on in horror, both wanting to go out and do something, but instead opt to send out the Prince of Verona(Akira) instead. As the girl takes the stage, she grabs both Narutaki twins by the collars and effortlessly separates them, much to the directing duo's relief before breaking up the fight that her character is supposed to between the Capulets and Montagues.

"Well…" Clyde chuckles nervously. "I suppose it could have started off worse. At least nobody got a bloody nose this time."

* * *

"Me marry your daughter Juliet, yes?" 

Lord Capulet(Yuna) shoots the Count Paris(Ku Fei) a suspicious look at the question. Stroking his/her chin, the patriarch of the family finally responds.

"Well…that's an interesting offer, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to say no right now. My daughter is only thirteen and you're what? 20? You're a geezer compared to my daughter, y'know?"

"Age not stop some people, like…"

"Yes, yes, I know." Yuna quickly slaps a hand over Baka Yellow's mouth, not wanting to find out if she was going to delve into class matters or not. "Tell you what…if you're so interested in my daughter, why don't you try to woo her yourself? My family is holding a ball tonight and it would be the perfect opportunity for you to try and impress."

"Sounds good…then I marry?"

"Hell, I dunno." Yuna smiles and smirks. "After all, it could be true love. It isn't like my daughter is going to fall in love with one of those Montagues, like that Romeo."

Listening carefully, anyone in the audience that cared can clearly hear the sounds of a certain director and stage manager simultaneously face palming.

"That's OK, Natsumi…" Clyde tries to reassure the depressed looking director. "Nodoka is a sharp one. She'll be more on the ball than Yuna-san and Ku-san."

* * *

"So, Madame Juliet is all ready for the ball tonight then?" Nurse Haruna grins as she folds laundry on the set. "I'm proud of you, finally ready to find a man and all that noise." 

"All that noise?" Clyde shrugs, not really remembering this as part of the play.

"Oh, not you too!" Juliet (Nodoka) whines to her confidant. "Mother already tried to set me up with Count Paris!"

"Well, is he rich?"

"Y…Yes, he is."

"Is he hot?"

Nodoka, taken aback, blushes profusely as she tries to assess the "hotness" of Count Ku Fei.

"Er…I suppose so."

"Well then, what's the problem?"

Nodoka, trying to get back on track, continues to derive from her lines.

"I'm only thirteen though! I'm too young to think about marriage!"

"Oh, come on now, Juliet." Haruna chuckles, patting her friend on the head as she leans in, speaking at this point in a whisper that only Nodoka can hear. "What about Negi-sensei? You want to marry him, don't you?"

"I…I don't know what that has to do with this conversation!" Nodoka's blush growing deeper and deeper as she continues on. "I don't think I'm ready for marriage!"

"OK, no problem!" Haruna grins, pulling Nodoka close again. "You don't have to worry about marriage, I guess. Hell, you don't need it for…well…"

Haruna looks back and forth at the audience and backstage, duly noting Clyde and Natsumi shaking their heads in the universal gesture of "no." Shooting the duo a wink, the nurse cups her hands over Nodoka's ear and whispers yet again, causing the librarian/female lead to continue the recently established tradition of changing different and deeper hues of red. Finally, after about thirty seconds or so, Nodoka runs from the stage, humming to herself, shaking her head, and holding her hands over her ears.

"Oh my…it seems as though poor Juliet is sick." Nurse Haruna chuckles, haphazardly coming up with an excuse for the embarrassed girl's fleeing from the stage. "Be careful now, dearie! Running isn't a good thing to do if you are ill!"

Natsumi and Clyde watch on for a few moments as the curtain drops for a scene change. Laughing nervously, Clyde turns over to the speechless director.

"OK! That could have went better! Er…Negi is on next at least. He shouldn't get flustered over anything…right?"

* * *

True enough to Clyde's prediction, Negi took his part seriously and nailed his lines as Romeo to a tee. Unfortunately for the worried director and stage manager, Negi was the only one in the group that was successful, as Mercutio (Asuna) stumbled her way through the scene and Benvolio (Evangeline) more or less threatened Romeo with bodily harm should he not sneak into the Capulet's ball, which in turn lead to Negi stammering his lines from then on out. Clyde in particular couldn't help but wince at the heartwarming scene opener where the vampire had the poor teacher lifted in the air. Natsumi just sits in her directing chair shaking her head in disbelief as Clyde looks on as the ball unfolds in front of them, complete with Evangeline still threatening poor Negi. 

"So help me Romeo, you are going to find true love tonight or else…"

"Hey, Eva…er, Benvoido." Asuna quickly interjects, hoping to keep the play's male protagonist from being rattled any further, though the botching of the vampire's stage name slightly rattles the director. "We're all at the ball now. As long as we keep a low profile, everything will be fine."

"Be thankful I'm doing this." Evangeline mutters under her breath as she adjusts the mask on her face. "Well then Romeo, get out there and find yourself some lucky woman. Don't ruin this family, or I'll make sure you regret it."

Blinking in confusion, Clyde turns to Natsumi, who at this point looks like she is ready to vomit, and gives her a hug.

"OK, so our Romeo is a little shaken now." Clyde breaks up his pity embrace to go back to watching the ball unfold. "Try to think positive. At least this is going to be a nice, easy part. All they have to do right now is dance to classical music…"

As if on cue, the not-so-classic sounds of Linkin Park come from the instruments, namely to the tune of "Faint." With both director and stage manager having confused looks on their faces, the duo decides to change the tune of the play, quite literally. Clyde, being decked out in his Observer attire for his narrator role, shoots Natsumi a thumbs up and sneaks onto the stage, opting to dance with the female character closest to the musicians(Madoka/Sakurako/Misa), which would happen to be Lady Capulet (Ako).

"Quite a ball, isn't it, milady?" Clyde winks to the blushing nurse as they dance.

"I…Indeed it is, good sir." Ako cracks a slight smile before whispering to Clyde. "Sorry. I should have warned you that Madoka has a thing for western music."

"Eh, this is better than some boy band junk." The blonde chuckles as the duo's dance leads them ever closer to the cheerleaders, at which point Clyde lightly taps on Sakurako's shoulder.

"Hey, Clyde-kun!" The bubbly cheerleader exclaims, before lowering her voice out of the slight humiliation of some of the cast laughing at her cheerful greeting. "So how'd your date with Yuna go?"

"Oh, for the love of…it wasn't a date!" Clyde quietly hisses at the girl, before changing his voice to a sweeter tone. "Hey, if you lovely ladies wouldn't mind, could you please play something a little more…classical?"

"Sorry, Clyde-kun!" Madoka quietly pipes in. "We didn't have time to learn both our lines and new music!"

"Lines!?" Clyde huffs quietly in disbelief. "You guys have like two lines in the whole play!"

"Don't worry your cute little head, Clyde-kun." Misa winks at the boy. "We'll play something that's a little more on the classical side."

Sighing with relief, Clyde and Ako dance away from the trio, only to see Clyde shaking his head a few seconds later as the musicians break out Boston's "More Than A Feeling" this time around. Glaring over at the trio, Madoka shrugs as she plays her bass, saying that their gig the night before was heavy in the classic rock department.

"That's not what I meant…ah, screw it." Clyde sweat drops in response to the musicians' particular play list. Feeling sorry for the frustrated stage manager, Ako pats the boy on the back as they continue their dance. Clyde is just about out of the woods and off the stage, when he feels a hand fall hard on his shoulder. Pivoting around, the blonde comes face to face with an irritated looking Yuna.

"Sorry, Clyde-kun." Yuna mutters quietly before getting into Lord Capulet/protective husband mode. "Leave my woman alone, knave!"

And with those five simple words, Yuna rears back her right arm and drops a confused Clyde to the floor and sending his feathered hat flying off stage with a solid jab. Clyde just lies on the ground and blinks a few times, rubbing his chin in pain before getting something else to focus on as Yuna boots him hard in the ribs.

"Yun…uh, honey?" Ako corrects herself as she helps Clyde get to a knee. "What was that all about?"

"Come on, babe!" Yuna counters. "This guy was trying to put his paws all over you…hey, get back here!"

Yuna quickly gives chase to the wounded Clyde as she trails him off the stage, leaving a confused ensemble cast in her wake and a sighing director offstage in her chair. A few seconds later, a laughing Yuna makes her return, only to have a look of shock put on her face as someone grabs her shoulders from behind and starts dragging her backwards. Acting on impulse, Yuna throws an elbow at her newfound "friend," causing the masked figure to stagger backwards, right down a trap door. Lord Capulet turns around only to see the top of her assailant's masked face as well as his or her white hair, the assailant's red eyes looking at Yuna as if to say "why me?" Natsumi and the battered Clyde look at each other and exchange confused looks before Clyde offers up the first excuse that comes to mind.

"Maybe he was wanting to kidnap Lord Capulet for ransom?"

* * *

"Romeo, oh Romeo. Wherefore art thou, Romeo?" Nodoka begins her soliloquy, nervously glancing off stage to see Haruna grinning ear from ear and flipping dual thumbs up at the librarian. The girl's nervousness gets slightly worse as Eva haphazardly tosses Negi out onto the stage a good few minutes before he is supposed to make his entrance. 

"Er…here I am, my love." Negi quickly improvises, trying to make the most of the situation. The youth quickly glares back at Eva from the backstage area, gulping as he sees her making a throat slash gesture. Negi nervously takes a couple of steps towards the balcony, looking up at his leading lady while standing in a rosebush at the balcony's base. What is supposed to happen is that a platform is supposed to slowly raise Negi to the top of the balcony to Juliet where they can continue their scene as Natsumi had planned. Instead, what does happen is the platform quickly raises Negi to the top of the stage and higher, catapulting him into the lighting fixtures some twenty feet up. Sighing, narrator Clyde tries his best to come up with an excuse as he takes the center of the stage.

"Er…Romeo's love for his fair Juliet knows no bounds! Romeo's love is even higher than the stars above us! What is next for our fair lovers? We will find out after a short intermission!"

Clyde takes off his recently retrieved feathered hat and bows as the curtain closes to a smattering of applause and a lot of confused murmurings in the crowd. Sighing, Clyde walks back over to the director's chair and kneels next to Natsumi, a flash of light turning his attention to a smirking Asakura.

"Well, at least you've been giving me something entertaining to write about, Clyde-kun." The reporter smirks, taking a photograph of the lighting up top as Kaede effortlessly scales up it and rescues the distressed Romeo from his perilous perch. "You guys do know that this is going to be on the front page of the school newspaper, right?"

The news, obviously not what Natsumi wanted to hear causes her to slump further into her director's chair. Shaking her head in despair, the red head thinks to herself.

"_Well there's got to be SOMETHING we can salvage…right?"_

* * *

Meanwhile in the stands, a few select attendees are mulling over what they have seen thus far. In a balcony in the back of the auditorium, two young men look on at the still down curtain amid talking between themselves. One of which with black hair and a trench coat, the other with just a bit of jet black hair poking out from under the leather bound book that he is reading in front of him. 

"Well Masayoshi, what do you think so far?"

Not dropping the book but slightly moving his head towards the other youth, the other boy adjusts his glasses and responds.

"Terrible. Just terrible. There isn't really much more to say about it, Connor."

"I know I asked earlier, but why exactly are we here watching this?"

"Hey, it isn't like we had anything else going on today."

"True, but why this? It's kind of on the sucky side."

Closer to the stage, about in the middle of the seats, two older gentlemen wearing suits watch the ongoing spectacle as well. After sitting in awkward silence one of the men turns and speaks.

"Well, what do you make of it, Peten-sensei?"

"I'm thinking it's a convincing argument for the death of theatre, Markham-sensei."

The better built man chuckles at the other teacher's response not really being able to disagree.

"And to think that I may wind up teaching some of them in a few years."

Peten for his part, shakes his head before piping up.

"I have a few of them already. Truth be told, I wasn't expecting it to be this bad. They raised my hopes and dashed them quite expertly. Especially the musicians. What in the world were they thinking with playing Boston? Classical, yes, but not in the sense that the play needs. I think I died a little inside."

"Little harsh, aren't you?"

"Well, Mr. Military Man, what did you think of the fighting choreography that we've seen?"

"…Point taken. Sword isn't exactly a military training point, I know, but dang."

Even further up, in the front row, a blonde haired boy offers his own assessment of the play to anybody that will listen.

"Oh give me a break! This isn't how the play is supposed to go at all! They're doing it all wrong!"

Sighing in frustration, a girl that has been sitting next to the youth finally turns to him and asks a question.

"Hey, what's your name?"

The boy looks over at the girl and can't help but chuckle. In the blonde's eyes, it appears that he is being hit on by a ten year old girl in a dark blue sweater. Deciding to humor the black haired, brown eyed girl, he decides to humor her.

"Luke Mason."

"Nice to meet you Luke. My name is Risc Trilon."

"Well, nice to meet you. No offense, but I'm not really interested in ten year olds."

Nodding and smiling sweetly, Risc's smirk quickly transforms into a slight scowl as she drives her right fist straight into Luke's gut, causing the boy to double over winded. As Luke gasps for air and braces himself up with the armrests on the chair he is sitting in, the girl drives her left fist into his gut, with similar results to the first blow.

"First of all, just because I'm short doesn't mean I'm ten! Second of all, some people are actually trying to watch the play, so can it for a while, would ya?"

The boy thinks of saying something in defense, but the stare he's getting from the shorter girl tells him that it would probably be a better idea to find another person to vent to. Not really seeing anybody he would feel like venting to nearby, Luke simply opts to sit in his seat for the time being.

* * *

"We wish to be wed, Friar Lawrence." 

"You want to what!?" Friar Lawrence (Makie) shouts, eyes open with shock.

"We wish to be wed, Friar Lawrence." Negi repeats to the pink haired girl, causing her to smile and take the ear buds out of her ears and killing the MP3 player she was listening to.

"Oh, you want to get hitched!" Makie continues to beam, until something seemingly enters her mind. "Say, wait a minute. Weren't you here like yesterday complaining about some chick named Susie? Or was it Kelly? Er…Roxanne?"

"Rosalina…" Negi looks at the ground bashfully, not really having a reason to be ashamed but feeling that way due to the saddened look he is receiving from Makie.

"So you're going to two time her with Juliet?" Makie glares angrily at her teacher. "You're a real jerk, you know that!? I can't believe that Negi-kun would be so cruel!"

"Friar Lawrence! I can assure you that I have no idea as to who this 'Negi' gentleman is." Negi retorts, trying his hardest to save the scene and stay in character. "Anyways, Juliet and I truly love each other! Please help us! I beseech you!"

"Beseech?" Makie scratches her head, not really familiar with the word. After a couple moments of pondering, the gymnast continues on, the rare used word apparently taking her mind off of her two-timing accusations for the time being. "Er, I suppose that I could hitch you two. Yeah, why the heck not? It isn't like your two families hate each other's guts!"

"Actually…" Nodoka tries to respond, being cut off rather quickly by Friar Makie.

"Well, most people can't stand their in-laws! Let's get this show on the road! Romeo, do you want to marry Juliet?"

"Y…Yes." Negi stammers, taken aback by the gymnast's bluntness.

"Awesome! Juliet, do you want to marry Romeo?"

Blushing profusely, Nodoka nods. Clapping her hands in joy, Makie hugs both of the play's leads before continuing on.

"Sweet! Well, um…I guess you can give her a smooch now, unless anybody has an objection…"

"Um…we're the only ones here, Friar." Nodoka points out, growing ever more nervous as she sees Clyde, Chizuru, and Asakura restraining Ayaka from offstage out of the corner of her eye.

* * *

**Offstage**

* * *

"I object!" Ayaka mutters, not really being heard as Clyde cups a hand over the irritated blonde's mouth. 

"Come on now, Ayaka-san. It's just a play!" Clyde offers up before retracing his now-bitten hand. "You don't need to bite!"

"Hey, calm down, Ayaka." Chizuru tries her attempt to soothe the girl. "Look on the bright side. You win against Asuna. That's something you'll like, right?"

"Yeah, and then you get killed by Negi!" Asakura beams, the slight calm that Chizuru provided moments before being replaced by deep despair. Clyde and Chizuru glance at the redhead with looks of horror on their faces. "What? That's what happens. It isn't exactly like it was a big secret."

"Yeah, but you didn't have to say it." Clyde whines, offering the now-crying girl a handkerchief.

"Oops?"

* * *

"That was the worst marriage I've seen on stage!" Luke complains, garnering the stares of several irritated patrons. "What? I paid top dollar to sit up here!" 

Grumbling to himself, a man sitting on the opposite side of Luke taps the youth on the shoulder, the frustration on his face evident.

"Hey, all the tickets were 700 yen. You didn't pay more than anybody else."

Defeated in his argument, the blonde sits back in his seat, muttering inaudibly, presumably still about the play.

* * *

"Tybalt, Mercutio! Stop this foolishness!" 

Both Tybalt (Ayaka) and Mercutio (Asuna) lower their swords at Negi's beckoning, Asuna giving him a deer in the headlights type look, while Ayaka quickly recovers and stabs the redhead under her arm, causing the girl to yelp in pain.

"You didn't need to stab me that hard!" Asuna grumbles, still holding the sword under her arm. "That grazed off my shoulder first, you know!"

"Shut up Mercutio! You're dying!" Ayaka chortles, pleased with her work. "Now just be a good boy...girl...er, whatever you're supposed to be, lie on the ground, and bleed out."

"Oh this is crap…" Asuna mutters under her breath, not quite quiet enough to avoid Ayaka's hearing.

"Oh, still alive?" Smirking, the blonde picks up the sword that fell out of Asuna's hand and stabs it under her other arm. "There, now you're dead. See?"

Ayaka walks to her fallen foe's head and quickly lifts it up, pointing out the two swords that are stuck in her…well, were stuck in her until Asuna lifts her arms and clutches them around one of Ayaka's legs, causing the girl to trip backwards. Quickly getting to her feet, the incensed rep glares angrily at her classmate.

"What was that for!?"

"You were standing on my hair when you lifted my head, you idiot!" Asuna retorts, rubbing her head in pain. "You could watch what you're doing with your feet, you clumsy moron!"

"Clumsy moron? This coming from the girl that finishes dead last in the class every time we have a test?"

"Hey! I thought we were acting!"

"Oh we are. I just thought I'd throw it out there, monkey girl."

"Monkey girl? Oh, that's really nice there, Lolita!"

Negi moves towards the arguing girls, stopping in his tracks as he notices Asakura waving from offstage. Looking over, he sees the redhead pointing to Clyde, who is holding a large cardboard sign.

_Just "kill" Tybalt and get the play going. I don't think…_

Negi blinks confused before Asakura takes the sign out of Clyde's hands, revealing a second one behind it.

…_poor Natsumi can take much more._

At the end of the second sign, Negi's attention turns to Natsumi sitting in her director's chair, which at this point would more accurately be described as slumping in depression rather than sitting. Deciding that moving the play on is the best move, Negi quickly draws his rapier and stabs the distracted class rep under her right arm. Startled, the girl quickly falls forward "dead," right on top of Asuna, a tear forming in her eye as she does so. Letting out sighs of relief, the slight peace that the duo feels is short lived as they hear sobbing behind them. Slowly turning their heads, the duo notices Makie on her knees sobbing, her face buried into a confused looking Chizuru's chest.

"Hey, Makie-san? What's the problem?"

"Ayaka and Asuna died, Clyde-kun!"

Blinking in confusion, Clyde scratches his head. After a few seconds of soul searching, the blonde speaks again.

"…You do know that it's just part of the play, right?"

Lifting her head up, Makie stares right at Clyde, tears still welling in her eyes.

"I know, Clyde-kun! It's just that it's so sad!"

And with that, Makie resumes her crying, Chizuru doing her best to console the depressed gymnast. Clyde and Asakura just look at each other and shrug, while Akira comes over to the group, putting a fizzing glass of water into Natsumi's hand. Giving the swimmer a weak smile, Natsumi manages to pull herself out of her director's chair ever so slightly.

"Thank you, Akira-san."

"No problem. Shall I go on now?"

"Yeah. Now's good."

Nodding and smiling, Akira walks towards the stage, doing a good job of putting herself into Prince of Verona mode. Everything goes swimmingly for about thirty seconds, until the Prince banishes Romeo.

"What!?" Yuna yelps in shock. "Only exile!? That's bull crap! The dude killed my nephew!"

"He only did it because Tybalt killed Mercutio first." Lord Montague (Konoka) points out.

"Well, whoopty doo! I'm sure that Mercutio started it!" Yuna retorts, technically correct but not doing herself any favors by insulting the Prince's kinsman. "You know what, Konoka…er, Montague? We can settle this on our own! After I whip you, Romeo can be executed!"

"You know, I'm kind of happy we've been killed off." Ayaka mutters, still keeping the sword Negi stabbed at her under her arm. "We don't have to be a part of this any longer."

"I couldn't agree with you more, Ayaka." Asuna agrees, before asking a question. "You mind getting off of me? My leg is starting to go to sleep."

"Sorry, but we're dead, remember?"

Meanwhile, Yuna continues her argument for Negi execution, to little avail. Frustrated, Yuna takes a couple steps towards Konoka, only to find a blade to her throat. A blade wielded by Lady Montague (Setsuna).

"Please step back, Akashi-san."

Laughing very nervously now, Yuna puts her hands in the air and takes a couple of paces backwards, before turning to Akira.

"Um, yeah. Banishment works. I can settle for banishment."

* * *

"What you doing here?" 

Negi's acting shines through he is able to emulate the looks of sadness, shock, and rage perfectly. Count Paris (Ku Fei) looks on at the young protagonist, gripping her sword in her right hand.

"You a vandal! Now die!"

Negi glances over at Natsumi and Clyde, both of whom are giving the boy a thumbs up before bracing himself for Ku's attack. Negi, having a better understanding of the art of swordplay from his time at Meldiana is able to disarm Ku about 10 seconds into the fight. Rather than lying down though, the martial artist's instincts take over, causing her to clamp down on Negi's arm and throw him several feet into Nodoka's grave platform when the youngster goes for the deathblow. The surprised teacher gets to his feet, dodging a karate chop that takes a chunk out of the platform, causing the "unconscious" Juliet to let out a slight yelp in shock. Clyde and Natsumi for their parts just look at each other with looks of frustration and confusion.

"That wasn't supposed to happen!" Natsumi cries, the group compiled around her at this point shocked that the director hasn't fainted in her chair.

"Hell, I just want this thing to end." Clyde concedes, leaning on both Asakura and Chizuru as he watches, possibly as an attempt to keep himself from crawling into the nearest hole. "Last scene, so I guess we should all be thankful that the crowd hasn't rioted."

Turning their attention back to the fight scene, they notice that nothing has changed, as a now unarmed Negi is now doing his best to avoid getting knocked out by Ku Fei's flying fists and feet of fury. In particular, the entire cast can't help but wince when Ku obliterates the platform in front of Nodoka's head, who given the circumstances is finding it harder and harder to pretend to be unconscious. Finally, Negi inches in and tries to wrap his arms around Ku in an attempt to stop her, receiving a judo throw for his efforts.

"Ku-roshi…" Negi mutters softly, partially due to the wind being knocked out of him on his landing. "This is a mock fight…you're supposed to "die," remember?"

"Oh! Sorry, Negi-bozu!" Ku winks at the winded youth, winking at him before clutching her chest. "Oh, heart attack! There a bright light!"

The cast is finds themselves sweat dropping at Ku's improvision, watching as the girl staggers around in circles for a few moments before falling to the ground, tongue stuck out of her mouth.

"I dying! Romeo, you suck!"

"S…Sorry, Ku-roshi." Negi bows his head and whispers to the girl before going over to the shaken-but-still-pretending-to-be-unconscious Nodoka. Steeling himself and putting on his best sad face, Negi gently runs his hand through the girl's purple hair, putting a finger on her lips before taking out a vial filled with a red liquid and drinking it. Immediately after drinking said liquid, Negi's face wretches with a look of disgust before he falls to the ground, seemingly dead. Backstage, Clyde and Natsumi look at each other, both impressed with Negi's skill in faking his death.

"Wow, I can't believe he was able to get his face to look like that all on his own!" Natsumi smiles, pleased that at least this part of the play hasn't been a complete disaster.

"Yeah, about that…"

Natsumi turns her attention from the play to see a nonchalant Yue sipping a juice box. The blue haired girl walks up to Natsumi's chair and speaks.

"You see, I thought that it would be a good idea to give Negi-sensei some extra motivation. So instead of the plain food coloring and water, I added a little something extra."

"Something extra?" Clyde blinks in confusion, his face turning into a grimace as the short girl pulls a bottle of hot sauce out of her pocket. "Yeesh…"

"Hey, I'm the apothecary, right? I was just trying to make sure that the play didn't turn into a bigger disaster." The slightest of grins is etched on the short librarian's face as she says her next words albeit so quietly that nobody can hear them. "Plus, if Negi-sensei looked like he was in danger, maybe Nodoka would be inspired to "save him," as it were."

"He's now vomiting behind the slab." Asakura helpfully points out, much to the chagrin of the director and stage manager. Grimacing herself as she watches the ill boy crawl to the front of the stage and attempt to play dead again, the redhead continues on. "Yeah. That is a real award winning scene right there. Negi-kun looks like he's actually literally dying out there."

"Probably is." Yuna pipes in, leaning on Natsumi's chair. "Yikes…is he supposed to be turning that color?"

"Oh, he's fine!" Sakurako pipes up, pointing to the teacher who is giving the group offstage a thumbs up. "Negi-kun's gonna make it!"

Now taking his turn to play dead, Negi lies flat on the ground, the grimace on his face slightly subsiding. A few moments later, Juliet comes out of her potion induced slumber and looks around at the carnage. Whimpering as she notices the vial that Negi had drank out of, the purple haired lead walks slowly towards the leading man, being stopped a few feet short as a groaning Ku Fei gets to her feet.

"Romeo! You die now! You give heart attack and make me lose sight!"

"Romeo's already dead!" Nodoka replies, the look of confusion on her face being apparent to everybody that is still watching. "He poisoned himself! I'm Juliet!"

"Romeo pretend to be chick? Lame!" And with that, Ku picks up one of the fake swords lying nearby and stabs Nodoka under her arm, effectively "killing" her. Her work done, Ku clutches her chest, spins around three times, and falls to the ground with her tongue sticking out again in what apparently is the proper way to show character death in a middle school play. Clyde can only shake his head in frustration, rubbing his temples as he does so and being patted on the back by a nearby Ako and Yuna. Natsumi, on the other hand, continues to stare on at the carnage in shock.

"Juliet wasn't supposed to die like that! Paris is supposed to be dead! What happened!?"

Taking a moment to look at something other than the ground, Clyde scouts across the backstage area, his gaze locking on a certain blonde who has changed back into her street clothes after her character's death. A certain blonde who is now putting what looks like a checkbook into her vest pocket. A blonde who Clyde can swear is winking at the now "dead" Count Paris with approval.

"Bribery…Maybe we should have done Annie instead. Asuna playing an orphan with her pissed off attitude might have been more entertaining…or maybe we should have done Rent. Hell, I don't know."

"Maybe they shouldn't have done anything…that was trash!

Raising an eyebrow, Clyde looks out into the audience…well, what's left of the audience, anyways. Besides the two youths sitting in the balcony up top, there is a dark skinned man clad in white, neon orange eyes wide open as he slowly applauds, thus effectively being the only means of positive reaction the play has recieved. Finally, rounding out the audience is Luke, who just now is realizing that his voice isn't being muffled out by the audience any more, namely because there isn't an audience any more. Laughing nervously, the blonde looks up on the stage to see a smirking Clyde walk into view. After turning to the cast members on stage and whispering something to Negi, Clyde jumps off the stage, cracking his knuckles and walking towards Luke. The boy gets up from his seat and nervously chuckles as he starts walking backwards slowly. The backwards walking suddenly and quickly turns into a sprint, however, as Clyde picks up his pace. Shaking his head in frustration, Clyde gives chase.

"So you want to talk crap about our play!? You could have left any time you wanted to, you know!" Clyde grumbles to himself as he is forced to hurdle a folding chair that Luke tosses in his path as an attempt to slow him down. "Hey! I have to help the janitor, so any property damage you cause is just going to piss me off even further!"

Negi, seeing that things aren't going as well as Clyde had promised, hops down from the stage and gives chase to the two blondes, hoping to catch his friend before he can get his mitts on the class' heckler. Taking a longer time to get over Luke's makeshift hurdles due to his smaller stature, Negi finally makes his way outside to see an angry Clyde holding Luke by the collar, with the latter gulping in fear. Before Clyde can do anything to the boy and before Negi can do anything to attempt to pacify his friend, a blinding white light emits from the auditorium. Seeing a way to get while the getting is good, Luke promptly kicks the distracted Clyde in the shin, making the boy release his grip to hold onto his leg in pain. Muttering profanities to himself, Clyde hobbles after Negi to the still open exit to the auditorium and peeks inside. Both boys gasp in shock as they survey the scene on the stage: Several things appearing to be weaker demons are currently chasing several members of Negi's class around the stage, backstage, and through the abandoned seats in the front rows. Right at the back of the stage on the slab used in the last scene, it seems that several more of the students have been trapped in what appears to be a ball of gelatin or maybe slime. After staring and adjusting his specs, Negi is able to single out Kaede, Ku Fei, Mana, Chachamaru, and Setsuna trapped in the strange concoction. As the boys get lost in their observations, a duo of flying beasts decide to take advantage of the situation and dive bomb at the duo.

"Wow…I guess that the student body wasn't the only ones that didn't like our little play." Clyde shakes his head sadly as his right hand moves slowly towards his waist. "Ah well. Things were getting too calm around here. Should have known something would happen sooner or later."

And so, acting on instinct, Clyde pulls a vial with a pale blue liquid out of one of the pouches on his belt and tosses it at the first beast, freezing it and dropping it to the ground, where it promptly shatters on impact. As for the second one, it zeroes in on Negi, who puts up his fists as it is his only way of defending himself. Before Negi even has the opportunity to defend himself, the demon is promptly smashed into the wall a few feet from the teacher. Looking up, Negi smiles as he sees Asuna flashing him a thumbs up.

"Th…Thank you, Asuna." Negi smiles before continuing. "What happened?"

Before the redhead has a chance to even speak, she is cut off by a man's voice.

"I believe that I can explain that, boy."

* * *

**Chapter 15 Preview:** Yuna Akashi, student number two! Well, as you can see, our play sucked in every sense of the word. I didn't think that we did that bad though where we would get ambushed by demons though! Wait a minute…it's that black haired kid again! He's actually helping us this time? Sweet! Wait a minute though. I have to do what now? What the hell!? Tune in next time on Negima: Fallout! See you soon!

* * *

**The Stat Line: **Started 1/12/08, Finished 2/05/08, Posted 2/13/08 2:01 p.m. 

**Musical Motivations:** Yakety Sax-Benny Hill Theme (It came to mind as the various miscues of the class were written up.), Sabotage-Beastie Boys (Was originally planning on having a bribed Clyde sabotage the play at the behest of Ayaka, but decided the class drowning on their own would turn out better. Still liked the idea of Ayaka trying to break up a kiss though, so kept it in.)

**The OC Cameo Brigade!**

X Serac-Connor Gavet (The Dreamer, Life In A Bottle)

Master Masa Random-Masayoshi Hitodama (Screwed Up, Messed Up, Muddled Up)

Tsutomu Teruko-Howell Fitzwilliam (Pactum Factum)

Dark Dragon Dave-Peten Falson (Bard Moon Rising)

Kafka'sdragon-Phillip Markham (Markham Chronicles Negima) **Slight AU:** (Markham is already established as a high school teacher in this story)

The Ansem Man-Cygnus (Scheme!, Amnesia?)

Eternal Longing-Risc Trilon (Termination of Spirit: Contract's Initiation)

Hydriatus-Luke Mason (Time is Everything)

**The Follow Up:** And so, the class play ended up a disaster, pretty much what most people could probably see coming from a mile away. If that wasn't bad enough, it seems that they have also came across some new "fans," as it were. How will things turn out? Well only the next chapter will tell. Special thanks to Hydriatus for helping me figure out the cast list, and another special thanks to Dark Dragon Dave for helping me figure out what to do with some of the play scenes. As always, reviews are accepted, as are questions, complaints, flames, whatever. Be nice and give Fallout an anniversary present, won't ya? See you March 3 with Chapter 15!

_-Midnight_


	15. Post Play Paranoia Part 1: Enter Kotaro

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Negima. That would be Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. Seriously. It's my birthday..well the day after anyways. Have a heart, would ya?

**Author's Notes:** Welcome back to Fallout! When we last left our favorite little class, they had just gotten done stumbling their way through one of Shakespeare's masterpieces in Romeo and Juliet. Not only that, but it seems that they have gotten some unwanted guests to boot, that have seemingly decided to capture some of the class. How will the rest of the class react? How can the rest of the class react? Well, there's only one way to find out. On with the show!

**The Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 15

* * *

**

_From last time in Negima: Fallout_

And so, acting on instinct, Clyde pulls a vial with a pale blue liquid out of one of the pouches on his belt and tosses it at the first one, freezing it and dropping it to the ground, where it promptly shatters on impact. As for the second one, it zeroes in on Negi, who puts up his fists as it is his only way of defending himself. Before Negi even has the opportunity to defend himself, the demon is promptly smashed into the wall a few feet from the teacher. Looking up, Negi smiles as he sees Asuna flashing him a thumbs up.

"Th…Thank you, Asuna." Negi smiles before continuing. "What happened?"

Before the redhead has a chance to even speak, she is cut off by a man's voice.

"I believe that I can explain that, boy."

* * *

"Who are you?" 

Negi can't help but gulp in fear at the sight in front of him. An older looking gentleman, with a white mustache/beard combo and white hair sticking out from under his brimmed hat. The man's stature, however, seems to strongly indicate something odd about him, namely the fact that despite the suit and trench coat the man is wearing, he appears to be in the shape of a man at least half his apparent age. Smirking slightly, the stranger takes off his hat and bows to the perplexed teacher, grinning ever so slightly as he watches small demons chasing around the members of the class that haven't been placed in a goo prison.

"Ah, good day to you, Negi Springfield." The man's salutation is met with looks of confusion from Negi as well as Asuna and Clyde "Ah, how rude of me to not introduce myself. I am Graf Wilhelm Josef Von Herrmann. Not really much of a need for a title these days, as it is a bit of an old thing, but there it is. I trust that you knew about my coming from those sweet dreams you've been having the last couple of weeks?"

All Negi can do is gasp in shock at Wilhelm's revelation, sweating slightly as he recalls his recent nightmares. Asuna and Clyde for their parts look at Negi, then Wilhelm, and then each other, both with mixed looks of surprise and slight anger. Before any of the youths can say anything, the old man continues.

"I've done my research on you, Negi Springfield. Son of the Thousand Master, who unfortunately has had his magic sealed until the stroke of midnight tonight. Which is why I've taken the liberty of dissolving all of your temporary pactios when I showed up. I know that you aren't much of a threat without your magic, even less so without those five trapped over there, but why take the risk that you may be able to stall for time to unseal your magic, hmm? Not only that, but I've also taken the liberty of putting up a barrier around this building. That way, we can have our privacy. And truth be told, you are only a secondary reason for my coming."

"Secondary reason?" Negi blinks in confusion. "If you aren't here for me, then why are you here?"

"Why, I'm here for this young lady right here." Wilhelm beams as he motions towards a now shocked Asuna. "You see, Ms. Kagurazaka here has the uncanny ability to summon demons…plus she still has her knack for cancelling magic. I suppose I should thank you for mucking around in the past, lad. Without your interference, Asuna Kagurazaka would be dead."

"_It's like having your cake and eating it too."_ Clyde ponders to himself as the old man continues speaking. _"Asuna did have her life saved, yet according to this guy she was able to keep her magic cancelling from her deal with that demon king...but she still can summon demons due to the contract being voided? How in the hell do you get so lucky to keep both abilities? Well, lucky might not be the right way to describe demon calling, but…"_

"…anyways, we can do this the easy way, Asuna Kagurazaka…"

Wilhelm finds himself being cut off rather abruptly as he takes a roundhouse to the face. Slowly turning back towards the irritated redhead, the old man can't help but chuckle as he wipes a small trickle of blood from his nose.

"…well then, I guess you chose on the hard way. Oh well. I tried to go about it civilly, at least."

And with that, Wilhelm snaps his fingers, causing a puddle of liquid to rush from the goo prison that a portion of Negi's class found themselves trapped in. The puddle of slime quickly splits into three after traveling below the man's legs. Each individual puddle raises up and forms into what appears to be a girl, leaving Negi, Clyde, and Asuna to scratch their heads.

"Nice to meet you guys! My name is Ameko!" The first "girl" bows, light haired and wearing glasses.

"The name is Suramui. This should be fun!" The second replies, smirking the whole time while brandishing a hairstyle familiar to Makie's.

"Purin." The third simply replies, having longer hair than either the first or second girl combined.

"So there's only three?" Clyde laughs aloud. "You know, that's funny. I could have sworn that there were supposed to be seven dwarves…"

"Man, what a smartass." Suramui replies as she throws an elbow into the unsuspecting youth's chest, sending him flying backwards several yards behind a curtain. Negi and Asuna watch as the boy crashes and burns before looking back at the now laughing Wilhelm.

"Such a shame that he decided not to take the Slime Sisters seriously. There is a good reason that they are my main cohorts, after all. Now then, if you two would come with me..."

Before Negi or Asuna have time to respond, they find somebody responding for them in a less than diplomatic way, as a fist comes flying in from the old man's right, causing him to stagger about slightly. As the Graf attempts to regain his bearings, Negi and Asuna both turn their attention to their newfound ally, Negi's eyes nearly popping out of his head as he sees just who it is. Dressed in black and with dog ears poking out of his black hair, the boy smirks and holds up a victory sign before speaking.

"Come on, Negi! There's more than enough time to stare like an idiot after we take care of this guy!"

"Kotaro-kun!?"

* * *

"For being amoeba girls, they sure can hit hard…" 

Clyde grimaces and slowly picks himself up off the ground before hearing faint applause from his side. Quickly pivoting around, he sees a clapping Asakura and Yuna.

"This is one hell of an improvisation, Clyde-kun!" The redhead grins as she watches Ako run from what looks like a wolf a few meters away. "It's too bad that everybody left, but still, it's entertaining!"

"It isn't an improv!" Clyde points out, slight annoyance in his voice. "I was one of the few people that wanted to make sure that this play didn't suck, remember?"

"So what exactly are those things then?" Yuna ponders, wincing as she sees Chizuru take out a kappa looking creature with a frying pan. "…And where in the hell did Chizuru get a frying pan?"

"Those would be demons, Ane-san!"

Yuna turns her attention over to Asakura and stares at her, confused that she was able to drop her voice to sound like a male, not as confused when Chamo scurries out of her vest and hops onto the reporter's shoulder.

"Oh, right, right! Sorry, Chamo-kun!" Yuna chuckles. "It's just that I haven't seen you around too much the last few days."

"Sheesh, a guy doesn't go to school for a couple days and he already gets forgotten about…I'm crushed." Chamo replies, a tear coming to his eye as he stares hurtfully at Yuna. As the basketball girl stammers and tries to come up with a way to apologize, the ermine breaks out in laughter. "I was just messing with ya, kid! You're a little on the gullible side, aren't you?"

"Hey Chamo. No offense or anything, but do you think we could figure something out before…" Clyde trails off as he looks towards his former location to see Kotaro standing tall and the older man staggering. "Great, it's that kid from the magic cage. What's he doing here? He isn't trying to pick a fight again, is he? Man, what am I going to do?"

"Make a pactio, Clyde!" Chamo helpfully points out as he hops to the blonde's shoulder. "Be a sport and help make me mone…I mean, help save the day!"

"Hey, if I try to make a pactio with anybody, I'm going to get fried!" Clyde points out before sitting on the floor Indian style and crossing his arms. "I think I'll pass."

"You heard it as well as I did, Clyde! Aniki's pactios have all been severed thanks to the old guy there! And besides, I can split work as a familiar, seeing as how you don't have one! Come on, we'll help each other out! What do you say?"

"What's the angle?" Clyde raises an eyebrow at the ermine. "There's got to be a catch somewhere, knowing you."

"No catch whatsoever!" Chamo dismisses the boy's worries, well slightly anyways as Clyde notes the suspicious gleam in the ermine's eye.

"Fine, fine. As long as I don't get shocked." Clyde relents before a second question comes to mind. "But who am I supposed to form a pactio with?"

"Hey, I'll do it!"

Eyebrows raised, both Clyde and Chamo turn to the source of the words, that being Yuna.

"Hey, what's with the look? I'm just trying to be helpful!"

"She's taking it rather well, I'd say." Chamo chuckles. "Figuring what is needed, I was figuring that she would be a little hesitant."

"What do you mean, 'what is needed?" Yuna asks, perplexed. "It isn't that big of a deal, is it?"

Shaking her head, Asakura inches closer to Yuna and puts an arm around her shoulder.

"Seeing as how you are a little in the dark about this, I'll explain it for you, Akashi."

* * *

"What in the world are you doing here?" 

All Negi can do despite the boy's earlier wording is stare at the youth.

"Let's just say that it's time off for good behavior." Kotaro offers up as a response. "We probably have more important things to do than ask questions right now."

After uttering those words, Kotaro sidesteps as Purin attempts to roundhouse kick him. Grabbing the girl by the leg, the wolf hanyo swings her like a baseball bat squarely into Ameko. The deed done, Kotaro slams Purin into the ground before turning to a shocked Negi.

"I thought you didn't hit girls!"

Thinking about the boy's thought for a moment, all Kotaro can find himself doing is shrugging.

"Hey, the only girlish thing about them is their appearance. Amoeba girls are definitely an exception, especially when they're wanting to kill you."

"R…Right."

Nodding in agreement with Kotaro, Negi quickly takes a stance, much to the hanyo's shock.

"Hey, that's an improvement since the last time we fought!"

"Thanks, Kotaro-kun." Negi replies before a slight look of worry shows on his face. "Although I've only been studying for a couple of wee…"

Negi finds himself being interrupted as he sidesteps a Purin uppercut before countering with a spin kick, sending the slime sister flying backwards. Kotaro for his part sweep kicks an incoming Suramui sending her to the ground with a thud. Wilhelm for his part looks on smiling and applauding.

"Very impressive lads!" Wilhelm grins as he cracks his neck. "So it seems that Negi-kun has been making good use of his downtime! This might give me a bit of sport, after all."

"We'll give you more than sport, old man!" Kotaro chuckles as he walks to the man's left. Wilhelm for his part grins even more as he stares the black haired youth down.

"Well, if it isn't the traitor! Glad to see that you made it to the party, wolf-boy!" Wilhelm haphazardly takes a swing at Kotaro, the youth managing to move enough to just get his cheek grazed. "So tell me, did they let you out early for betraying your allies?"

"How can I be a traitor when none of you were allies to begin with, you old geezer?" Kotaro counters, a slight look of anger etched on his face. "The only reason that I went along was because I was promised a fight with Negi here…" Pausing briefly, the boy suddenly turns his attention to the mentioned boy. "…speaking of which, that's one of the reasons I agreed to help out! I want a rematch, Negi!"

The hanyo's comment is met with sweat drops from Negi, Asuna, and Wilhelm, who clearly wasn't expecting to see dissention in the ranks given the situation.

"This isn't the place for it, you twerp!" Asuna yelps out as she throws an elbow into one of the Slime Sisters in self defense. "Besides, Negi could take you out again!"

"You really think you could, Negi!?" Kotaro chuckles, shaking his head at the aforementioned youth who is vehemently denying the statement, especially considering that it wasn't his to begin with. "The only reason you beat me is because you had to resort to a cheap trick! I'll be ready for it this time."

"Kotaro-kun, no offense, but Asuna is right. Maybe we should talk about this at a dif…."

Negi doesn't really get much time to finish his suggestion as Wilhelm has recovered from his sweat drop attack long enough to sent Negi and Kotaro flying back several feet with a right hook while grabbing Asuna in a headlock with his left arm in one fell swoop. The redhead, none to pleased with her abduction, swings her left leg back and kicks the old man in the leg, causing him to slightly buckle but quickly recover. Able to get to his feet first, Negi charges back into action, only to be restrained by the Slime Sisters. After struggling for a few moments, the trio splatters to the ground , leaving Negi to look at a grinning Kotaro, his arm out as he chopped the trio in half.

"Kotaro! What was…wow!"

"Hey, quit sitting around, stupid! Those three are going to pull themselves together before too long, so let's take the old guy down!"

"How are we going to do that? I don't have my magic, you know…"

"Negi, you got to learn to stop relying on magic so much! Stand on your own two feet!" Kotaro chastises his newfound ally before slightly lightening up. "I do have a plan though that doesn't need your magic to work though. Just follow my lead!"

Negi for his part, however, spaces out for a moment as he thinks on something that Wilhelm said. Namely, that being about the pactios being cancelled. Feeling about in his pockets, Negi smiles as he feels a card in his pocket.

"_Thank goodness! Cancelling the pactios with the girls must have been what that white light was all about. Since Clyde and I were outside when that happened, I still have my artifact. This should buy us some time. Just got to tone my shots down so I don't hurt any of the girls or cause any major damage. It's a good thing I've been practicing with these..."_

"Adeat!"

Turning his attention over to Negi, Kotaro just watches on in shock as the card in Negi's hand transforms away into dual revolvers. Grinning at the sight, the hanyo slaps Negi on the back laughing.

"You didn't tell me you had a back up weapon! You sly guy! Come on now, let's do it!"

Charging in, Negi takes aim at Wilhelm, who naturally pulls Asuna into the line of fire. However, luckily for the girl, getting shot isn't in her future as Kotaro is able to sneak in a hard elbow to the old man's shoulder, almost immediately after the old man shifted his position. A slight grimace on his face, Wilhelm's grip on Asuna loosens up enough to where Kotaro is able to take her out of the line of fire.

"Come on Negi! Let him have it!"

* * *

"What!?" Yuna blinks in confusion, not quite sure that she heard the reporter standing next to her correctly. "I have to kiss Clyde-kun?" 

"Hey, it isn't like we have any other options, sweetheart!" Chamo points out, hopping down from his perch to draw up a circle. "With Aniki's magic still sealed and most of our heavy hitters out of commission right now, it's one of the only options we have!"

"I could fight them off, you know." Clyde points out while going through assorted pouches on his belt looking for anything useful. "But the help probably would be a good idea. Not dying sounds like a good deal to me."

"So…you want to kiss me?" Yuna tilts her head as she looks at Clyde, slightly blushing as she does so.

"Ye…no….er, I mean we don't really have much of a choice." Clyde manages to stammer out, all the while blushing himself. "It'll be quick and painless."

"Yeah, that's the spirit, Clyde!" Chamo beams as he finishes his chalk work on the floor. "Now if you two happy teenagers would kindly step into the circle, we can get this little show on the road."

Gulping nervously, Yuna and Clyde both step into the circle, both go too fast, both end up clanking their heads together. After rubbing their foreheads in pain and glaring at the snickering Asakura, Clyde steels himself and closes his eyes, remembering what happened the last time he and Yuna were in this particular situation. Clyde opens his eyes after a few kiss less seconds to see Yuna seemingly still trying to prepare herself for the deed.

"No offense, Yuna, but can we hurry it up?" Clyde glances over to look at Negi, who is doing his damnest to try to get a clean shot in at Herrmann with his magic six-shooters while Kotaro finds himself preoccupied with the Slime Sisters. "I'm sure that Negi would appreciate the help."

"Hey! It's my first kiss. Of course I'm nervous!" Yuna defends herself, a slight look of annoyance on her face.

"Hey, for the record, this isn't your first kiss." The blonde points out before carrying on. "You remember how you had that power with the basketball and the kick ass shoes? That came from a kiss with Negi. Dang, I told you about it when we were stuck in that stupid cage with that dog boy out there. Me and Negi even became blood brothers as a demo! Short attention span?"

"A lot of stuff has happened since then! You can't expect me to keep track of it all!" Yuna defends herself before continuing. "Fine, it's only my second kiss…why are you shaking your head?"

"Well, that happened when we went out for burgers…um…how to explain this?" Clyde ponders, trying to figure out how to tell the story without Yuna getting ticked. "Well, you were kind of under mind control from Evangeline and you…well, you kind of kissed me…"

Clyde isn't able to say much more as he finds himself lying on the floor with a knot on his head. Yuna for her part just looks away embarrassed. Picking himself up and grimacing, Clyde takes a few moments to get over his newfound double vision before carrying on.

"OK…that could have went better."

"So it's my THIRD kiss…right?" Yuna looks around, not seeing any form of disagreement from anybody around.

"Um…should be." Clyde retorts. "So can we please do this?"

"Fine, fine. Sheesh…"

Taking a deep breath, Yuna and Clyde's faces grow closer and closer. Finally, the two teens' lips connect, much to the elation of the ermine watching on as the magic circle springs to life, basking the duo in light. A few seconds later, the blonde's eyes go from closed to wide open in shock as the kiss is broken up with Clyde staring at Yuna with a 'what the hell' type of look.

"What's wrong, Clyde-kun?" Yuna blinks in confusion, not quite sure about the blonde's reaction. "I just gave you a deep kiss like you're supposed to."

"Who in the heck told you that a deep kiss was needed?" Clyde manages to sputter out, still shocked. "You don't need one! A simple kiss on the forehead would have worked even!"

After standing dumbstruck for a few moments, the look of confusion on Yuna's face turns to one of embarrassment and then slight anger.

"Asakura! What the hell did you say I needed to give him a deep kiss for!?"

"I just wanted to see if you would buy it." The paparazzo grins, obviously getting a kick out of her work. "Boy, you should have seen the way you looked! I thought you were going to lose a leg or something with all the blood that rushed to your face!"

"Very funny, Kazumi!" Clyde sarcastically retorts as he looks down to the floor at Yuna's pactio card. On it appears to be a grinning Yuna dressed as a witch and brandishing two magic guns. The blonde scratches his head and mutters to himself. "Another gun? What the hell?"

Deciding not to worry about his strange connection with firearm pactios at this time, Clyde hands the card over to Yuna, who gives it the same confused look that the blonde did moments before.

"So are you going to go postal or something when you get older? You're two for two with the guns in those cards, y'know."

"Yeah, I know..." Clyde grumbles at the coincidence for a moment before regaining his composure. "Let's go save the day now, shall we?"

* * *

"This isn't working so well!" Negi shouts over to Kotaro as Wilhelm effortlessly dodges a blast from Negi's left hand revolver. Before the boy can fire with his right hand, Wilhelm is in his face and knocks him to the ground with a weak uppercut. But then again, at age ten, there isn't really much difference from a weak uppercut and a strong one. Nonetheless, the end result is the same as Negi winds up dazed on his back, but not before he manages to fire a shot off square into Wilhelm's chest. Unfortunately, the shot only makes a puff of smoke and a small hole in the front of Wilhelm's outfit. 

"Rather disappointing, Negi-kun." Wilhelm shakes his head as he walks towards the youth. "You aren't going to hurt me with anything if you check back on your power like that."

Kotaro, on the other hand, is in the process of fending off the Slime Sisters, none of which are too pleased over being sliced with the hanyo's ki-powered karate chop. Muttering under his breath in frustration, Kotaro rears back and attempts to throw a punch, only to have tentacles restrain his arms and leave him open to a barrage of fists. Just as Purin rears back for apparently a knockout blow, her head suddenly splits in two, spiraling about in a ball of slime. Taking the moment to retaliate, Kotaro judo throws Suramui over his shoulder and pulls off a quick roundhouse to brush off Ameko. Quickly snapping around and expecting to see Negi, the boy instead sees a grinning Yuna holding a magic pistol in her hand.

"Saved by a girl…how humiliating…" Kotaro mutters, receiving a thwack on the head from Yuna's second gun, resembling a handheld grenade launcher of sorts.

"You know you could show a little gratitude!" The black haired girl exclaims, sticking her tongue out at the wincing boy. "I did just kind of save your butt, you know!"

"Hey, I know you! You were one of the girls that was with Negi!" Kotaro slightly perks up at the recognition. "Nice firepower. Where'd you get those at?"

Before Yuna has a chance to respond to the boy's question, Suramui manages to come to and tries to chop Kotaro in the neck with her hand. "Tries to" being the important part, as Clyde knocks her back with a right hook.

"There's some payback!" Clyde beams as he cracks his knuckles, turning his attention to Kotaro. "You're welcome, punk."

"Man, you're still around?" The black haired youth complains as he head butts an incoming Purin. "Why don't you just leave the fighting to the people that know what they're doing?"

"Real cute there, munchkin." Clyde mutters as he pulls out what looks like a piece of withered vine from a pouch. Clearing his throat, the youth looks at the withered vine and concentrates, before shouting out an incantation. **"Natura Verbero!"**

Smirking, Clyde watches as the browned vine clipping turns a lush green and grows, roughly a length of 15 feet or so before stopping. Quickly acting, Clyde snaps the vine into the air, taking out what looks like an oversized bat that was preparing to dive bomb into the trio.

"See? That's the problem with you western mages!" Kotaro sneers as he curb stomps an oversized scorpion. "You guys need to rely too much on weapons and pactios!"

"Hey, if there's an advantage to take, why not take it?" Clyde counters, slicing a second scorpion in half as it advances. "Sometimes leaning on friends can be the difference between life and death!"

"Hey, can you guys argue later?" Yuna asks, shooting a bear-like demon as it advances on a running Nodoka. "We're kind of tied up, y'know?"

"Yeah, grow up midget!" Clyde retorts, jumping in shock as Yuna fires a warning blast at his feet. "OK, OK…I'll be nice for now."

The bickering on Kotaro's end comes to an end as well, though by what means is unknown as him and Clyde wind up breaking Negi's tumble backwards with their bodies, sending the trio down in a heap. Looking up from the recently made dog pile, the boys all notice that Wilhelm once again has Asuna in his grasp..

"This is pointless…" Clyde mutters to the duo of boys that he is currently playing an impromptu game of Twister with. "Not only do we have that guy to deal with, but we also have the slime girls and all the small demons running about."

"Kotaro-kun, you said you had a plan, right?" Negi asks the boy, groggily pulling himself from the pile as he does so. "Now might be a good time to go through with it."

"Right! Well, the weaker demons we can trash, no problem at all! But…" Kotaro hesitates for a moment, his pride not really wanting him to continue. "…those slime girls and the old man aren't going to go down without a fight…that's why I have this."

Grinning, Kotaro digs in his pockets for a few moments before waving about a small bottle. Looking at the bottle for a few moments and inspecting the various runes on it, Negi and Clyde both come to the same conclusion.

"We're going to try to seal them away!" Clyde grins as a confused Yuna watches on. "That'd be perfect! Say, where did you get the bottle from? Isn't exactly like they sell them in the mundane world, y'know?"

"The old guy at the school gave it to me." Kotaro responds. "It was one of the reasons that they let me go. They knew that old Wilhelm was going to…"

"Yeah, hold on a second."

Holding his hand up to Kotaro, Clyde digs about in his belt and pulls out another vial with pale blue liquid in it. Yawning haphazardly, the blonde chucks the vial over his shoulder, freezing slime sister Suramui in her tracks, figuratively and literally. Smirking as he hears the muffled threats of his frozen foe, Clyde turns his attention back to his group of allies.

"Go on ahead. I'm good now."

"Um…right. Like I was saying, the old guy knew that this was coming, but didn't know when or how, so I've been tailing you the last few days…by the way, that play was horrible!"

"Yeah, we know." Clyde grits his teeth at the truthful statement. "Keep going."

"Anyways, the plan is to seal the old guy and those amoeba girls in is vessel. Got to make sure we get them all in one shot though, since it is a one time deal."

"So we get them all grouped up and capture them all…" Negi nods in understanding. "Clyde, can you freeze those other two girls?"

"Think so. Should have enough of that potion left to do the job."

"Hey, and while you're at it, why don't you save those girls that are in that gel prison?" Kotaro points out, mockingly slapping Clyde on the back. "Should be a piece of cake for your little magic potions, shouldn't it?"

"Yeah, and then I could feel terrible for killing them." Clyde coldly retorts. "Trapping a bunch of girls in a freezing solid, a thick dome of it, to be precise, isn't exactly a smart thing. I don't know how they're going to breathe in there. Not sure how they're able to do it now, to be honest…but the fact remains, I'm not going to take the risk of not breaking them out in time, seeing how they could sufficate or go down to hypothermia…maybe Yuna could try to blast away at it?"

"Huh?" Yuna blinks, taking a moment away from her demon sharpshooting rampage long enough to look over at Clyde. "What do you mean?"

"I see…" Negi smiles as he adjusts his specs. "Yuna-san could aim away from the girls that are trapped and try to chip it away a little at a time."

"Sure, whatever! Get to it!" Kotaro quickly rattles off, shoving Negi, Yuna, and Clyde out of the way to avoid the remaining two Slime Sisters from practically dive bombing them. "Negi and I will take the old man down, the girl can go take out the slime jail thing!"

"The girl?" Yuna retorts, slightly insulted. "I have a name, you know!"

"Hey, calm down Yuna." Clyde replies as he puts a hand on her shoulder. "There'll be plenty of time to argue with the puppy when we aren't dead."

"Puppy!? We can go right now!"

"Let's get this plan working, can we?" Negi asks, slightly irked over his comrades arguing amongst themselves. "We can sort it out afterwards."

"…Sure Negi." Kotaro concedes, a vein bulging in his head as he sees Clyde stick his tongue out at him.

"Yeah, fine." Clyde replies, switching to a more serious face as Negi turns his attention to him. "Let's do this!"

_

* * *

_

**Chapter 16 Preview:** Hey everyone! The name is Kotaro Inugami! I'd rather be fighting than talking, but here goes! We're going to try to seal those demons up and get out of here! Sounds pretty easy, yeah, but that Wilhelm guy isn't going to make it easy! We can handle it though...what the hell!? Negi, where did you get that kind of power! ...Um, tune in next time! I got to get back to the battle!

* * *

**_Magical guide:_** **"Natura Verbero":** Nature's Whip 

**The Stat Line:** Started: 2/10/08, Completed: 3/2/08, Posted: 3/4/08 3:10 p.m.

**The Follow Up:** Seems that Negi and the rest of the group have a plan in place. Good for them, as plans are always good to have. How can it possibly end? Well, I know already, as it was originally supposed to be in this chapter, but I figured that it would probably be better to not throw a 9-10K word chapter at everybody, as that might be bordering on a little too long. Rest assured though, the conclusion is written up (for the most part anyways) and is sure to be exciting…well, hopefully exciting. Should be up and running soon, so look forward to it or dread it. Whichever works for you. As usual, reviews/constructive criticism/flames are welcomed, and hey, you can even consider it as a late birthday present for Midnight. (insert hokey grin here) Thanks for reading and see you with Chapter 16!

_-Midnight_


	16. Post Play Paranoia Part 2: Wilhelm's End

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I do own are my ideas, so please don't sue. Heck I don't even have taxes back yet, so you'd be out of luck.

**Author's Notes:** Before I get all heavy into Fallout, a quick announcement. Some have probably seen it, but for those that haven't, Midnight's Workshop is up! Oneshots of all shapes and sizes! Interested? Ell, look it up and check it out! I even take requests if anyone is interested! Anyways, enough for the cheap story plug, on with why you are reading…

Well, looks like it's time to continue on with Negi's little magic-less adventure. When we last left our various assortment of heroes, they had seemingly formed a battle plan. Will it be enough for Negi and his friends to save the day? Well, time to find out!

**The Key:**

_"words"_ - Notes character's thoughts/telepathy

_words_- Notes something written (letter, sign, etc)

_**"words"**_ - Notes spells

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 16**

* * *

"Hey, girls! How's it going?"

Confused as to why the blonde is speaking to them in a less than hostile tone, Purin and Ameko both look up to see Clyde grinning at the duo. Whistling nonchalantly, Clyde keeps his hands concealed within his cloak and takes a couple of steps towards the slimy duo. Acting on impulse, the two rush the blonde, with him unveiling his left hand and his whip, snapping it squarely at Purin. Dodging to the left, Clyde has the demon's move telegraphed, tossing a vial with the freezing potion at her. Unable to dodge, Purin hits the ground with a thud, sparkling as the few stage lights that are on reflect off her frozen form.

"Well, two down, one to go." Clyde grins as he stares down Ameko, who isn't as confident as she was about ten minutes ago. "One more slime munchkin popsicle coming up!"

"Wait! Let's not be too hasty about this!" Ameko chuckles nervously as she inches backwards. "Come on now! There's no reason to freeze me up like that."

"Oh, I think there's a reason, hon." Clyde grins as he waves around another vial in his right hand. "I think that reason would be the little impromptu beating you and your siblings tried to lay down on me and my friends."

"Oh, that? It's because the old man is using us!" The slime girl lies through her teeth, hoping to get Clyde to bite. "None of us really wanted to, but he threatened to kill us! It's horrible!"

"And I should believe you because…?"

"How about I tell you the Graf's weakness? That work right? You can trust me!"

"Hmm…" Clyde ponders the slime girl's offer for a few moments before breaking out in a grin. "Nope. I sure can't trust you. Thanks for playing. Bye bye!"

"No, wait!"

Ameko shouts her protests to no avail before being turned into a frozen statue like her sisters before her. Smirking in victory, Clyde cracks his knuckles and goes off to help where he can before being stopped in his tracks by the sound of something thumping about behind him. Turning around in an instant, Clyde notices a prop chest moving about violently a few feet away. Carefully, the blonde strikes the latch of the chest with his whip, breaking the lock and letting it's contents out. The contents being a very angry looking vampire.

"About time!" Evangeline huffs, straightening out her outfit as she glares at Clyde. Blinking in confusion, Clyde decides to press the issue, albeit hesitantly.

"Um…you're welcome? What exactly were you doing hiding in that trunk anyways?"

"I wasn't hiding you twit!" Eva scowls, grabbing a shocked Clyde around the collar. "That bastard Wilhelm tossed me in that chest when I kicked him!"

"Kicked him?"

"There isn't a full moon, you moron! I don't have any powers! What was I supposed to do?"

"Not piss him off?" Clyde chuckles nervously, Eva still keeping her death grip on his collar. "So, you have any ideas about this old guy?"

Frustrated, Evangeline releases her grip on Clyde and puts her hands to her temples, obviously none to thrilled about engaging in conversation with the Observer.

"Well, if he's what I think he is, boya might have himself a hard time…"

* * *

"Hey guys! Um…how's it going?"

Yuna laughs sheepishly as Chachamaru, Mana, Kaede, Ku Fei, and Setsuna all stare at her with various degrees of frustration.

"Right…dumb question. Don't worry though! I'll get you guys out of there! You can count on me!"

Grinning, the basketball girl raises up her magic pistol and takes aim at the center of the slimy prison, causing all in her path to run…well as good as one can run in a gelatin-like substance, anyways. A few moments after the middle gets cleared out, Yuna lets loose with a volley of shots, each one causing a slight tear in the magic material, although not large enough to keep the tears from repairing themselves.

"Aw, man. This sucks!" Yuna complains, obviously becoming more and more irritated with each failed shot. "How the hell am I going to save the day if I can't get them out?"

Frustrated, Yuna kicks a second smaller orb of slime, listening to the larger orb making a suction-like sound as she ponders her options. Muttering to herself, the girl kneels down and puts a hand to her chin.

"Let's see…no, that wouldn't work. What if I…? Damnit, that idea sucks too…"

"Akashi-san?"

"Yeah, hang on a minute, would ya Setsuna? I'm trying to figure out a way to save you."

"But Akashi-san…"

"Calm down! You guys panicking isn't going to help out at all! I'll get you guys out somehow, I promise!"

"But I'm working on getting us ou…"

"I got it! Why didn't I think of it sooner?" Yuna laughs, lightly punching herself in the head before grabbing her second gun. "Why don't I just use this big one? Bigger is better, right? I'll spring you girls! Yuna Akashi to the rescue!"

"Akashi-san! Wait!"

Setsuna's pleas go unnoticed as Yuna pivots around and fires with the launcher looking gun, the unexpected recoil knocking her to the ground. As she falls, Yuna gasps in shock as she sees just why Setsuna was trying to get her attention; namely because she had cut herself out with her sword and was working on cutting out the other captured girls. Luckily for the swordswoman, her reflexes are sharp enough to let her roll out of the way before the blast from Yuna's gun hits the center of the slime prison, causing it to explode and splatter quite spectacularly, covering anyone in a 15 foot radius in the goo, particularly Makie, who was already having bad luck with being chased by several demons before getting slimed.

"Noooo!!" The gymnast wails, coated head from toe with one of her least favorite things. "It's going to take a week to get this feeling off my skin! Icky, icky, icky!"

Not able to withstand the feeling any longer, a very woozy Makie falls to the floor unconscious, quivering and muttering about slime slightly as she does.

"S…Sorry, Makie." Yuna winces, genuinely feeling sorry for her slimed friend. The feeling of guilt goes away though as the black haired girl realizes that she did free everybody from the slime prison. Her feeling of elation is short lived though, as she is spun around by an irritated looking Setsuna.

"Hey, I got you guys out…and you're pissed…" Yuna trails off, not quite sure what she did. "Um…any reason?"

"That slime you kicked into the pile had our weapons in it." Setsuna starts, trying to remain calm. "Once I got my sword, I was able to slice my way out and was working on getting everyone else out. You almost blasted me with your magic gun…where did you get magic guns from, anyways?"

"What? These old things?" Yuna chuckles, trying to come up with an excuse. "Well, I got them only recently. A gift I guess…" The girl chuckles again as her voice gets quieter. "…from one of those pactio things with Clyde-kun, but they don't need to know that."

"You and Metro-san have a pactio!?" Setsuna gasps, Yuna face palming as the swordswoman's hearing is apparently sharp enough to pick up quick spoken whispers. "You do know the responsibilities of having a pactio, right?"

"Um…I get a cool weapon?" The basketball girl retorts, causing Setsuna to face fault. "What, there's more?"

"Clyde-kun and Yuna pactio?" Ku cuts in, finger on her chin. "Congratulations! I didn't know you two date!"

"We're not dating!" Yuna defends herself, slightly blushing. "It's just that desperate times called for desperate measures!"

Chuckling, Kaede walks up to Yuna and teasingly rubs the top of her head with her hand. Her deed done, Kaede goes to work on cleaning up smaller demons.

"What the hell was that for!?" The black haired girl asks, still blushing. "Nothing happened! You guys are taking this the wrong way!"

Yuna stops her ranting long enough to notice that there is nobody listening to her, as they are all currently busy rescuing their fellow classmates from the runaround demons. Sighing in frustration, Yuna readies her magic guns and sets out to do the same.

* * *

"Hey, you mind letting me go already!?" Asuna growls, obviously none too pleased about having Wilhelm's arm wrapped around her neck. "It's getting a little tough to breathe."

"Sorry, young lady, but I'm afraid that isn't possible." Wilhelm beams at his words, generating a scoff from Asuna. "You are much to valuable to let go, after all."

"Well, I tried to be nice…" Asuna mutters before stomping down hard on the Graf's boot. Much to her shock, the man doesn't even flinch when the girl's heel grinds into his foot. "What gives!? Shouldn't you be groaning in pain or something?"

"Heh…I'm not exactly what you could call 'normal,' Asuna-kun." Wilhelm chuckles as he notices Kotaro and Negi approaching. "Oh! Glad to see you two lads are still alive! Ready for round two?"

"You bet, old man!" Kotaro grins as he cracks his knuckles, splitting himself into duplicates as he does so. "Let's see how you handle this one!"

Laughing, Kotaro's multiple forms branch out and close in on the old man. All of the forms continue with their laughing as they hop about the old man, seemingly looking for an attack opening that isn't going to wind up accidentally hitting Asuna. While Kotaro keeps the old man preoccupied, Negi slides in and drives an elbow into Wilhelm's gut, causing him to let out a slight gasp, yet still keep his grip on the irritated Asuna. Negi tries to follow up, but takes a knee to the gut followed by a stiff jab to Negi's jaw, sending him sliding back. Resting on a knee and the taste of blood in his mouth, the young teacher can only watch on as Wilhelm throws haymakers at each Kotaro, one by one picking them off until there is just one Kotaro, also on a knee, also tasting his blood, also kneeling next to Negi.

"I know that you don't have your magic right now, but really. I was hoping that you would provide more of a challenge, Negi-kun." Wilhelm mockingly states, his grip on Asuna still strong. "I suppose if that's all that you can muster, I'll be on my way…on second thought. Maybe you need a little more motivation, hmm? Well then…"

Chuckling, Wilhelm removes his hat, the sight of which causes Asuna to gasp, Kotaro to nod already knowing the truth behind the man, and Negi just staring on in shock.

"I take it that you remember me then, Negi Springfield-kun?"

Negi continues to stare at Wilhelm, anybody looking into the teacher's eyes feeling a sense of sadness for the boy, though for what reason is unknown to them. The young boy continues to look on at Wilhelm, who's head isn't resembling that of an older gentleman now, but rather that of a cruel demon, his hair being replaced by horns, the grin on his face still there, only much, much more devious as it is painfully clear that this is not a being from the normal world. Still staring in horror, Wilhelm decides to push on the conversation.

"What was it now? Five…no, six years…I'm hoping that this should be enough motivation for you to put your heart into fighting."

Trying to snap out of it but ultimately failing, all Negi can do is continue to stare at Wilhelm. Shaking his head, the now-exposed demon puts his hat back on his head, resuming his human guise.

"So that's how it's going to be? What a pity, Negi-kun. If you are just going to stand there, let's give you a reason to, shall we?"

Chuckling, Wilhelm opens his mouth, a light starting to form in the back of his throat. A couple of seconds later, a beam erupts from his mouth, straight ahead at Negi, who would have wound up getting hit by it if not for Kotaro shoving him out of the way. Before the youth has a chance to thank his newfound ally, he winds up getting smoked in the head for his troubles.

"What was that for, Kotaro!?"

"For being such an idiot!" Kotaro huffs, obviously none too happy over having a stationary ally. "Look, I don't know what made you freeze up when you saw that the old guy was a demon, but come on! It looks like you guys have something that happened in the past, but that's just it! You have to focus on what is going on now or else you're going to wind up getting everybody killed! All these girls are depending on you, Negi! Hell, even that blonde idiot is counting on you! So pull it together already, stupid!"

Before Negi has a chance to respond to Kotaro's chastising, he shoves Kotaro out of the way of a second beam from Wilhelm. Now on his feet, Negi stares at Wilhelm, his eyes burning with a newfound resolve.

"That's it! That's the fire I was hoping for! Show me what you have, Negi-kun!"

Fascinated with his revitalized opponent, Wilhelm lets his grip on Asuna go, leaving the girl to scramble to Negi, who's left wrist is glowing a pale blue. A few moments later and a blinding flash washes over Negi, causing all nearby to avert their eyes due to the sheer light. When the flash subsides, Negi holds his left arm in front of him, showing that his magic seal is nowhere to be found.

"Overpowering a spell seal…very impressive, Negi-kun!" Wilhelm laughs at the revelation, clearly thrilled that Negi is going to be giving him more of a challenge. "Come now, boy! Let's see what you can do unhindered!"

Not needing an invitation, Negi charges at his adversary, clearly a lot quicker than he was before. Lunging at Wilhelm, Negi drives an elbow hard into his foe's stomach, actually making the demon stagger backwards and have to go on the defensive. Following up, Negi throws a vicious uppercut at Wilhelm, his fist cackling with electrical magic as he connects. Wilhelm attempts a counter punch, but with his adrenaline pumping and his magic returned, Negi's reflexes are sharp enough to allow him to sidestep out of the way before throwing another uppercut into Wilhelm, this time to the ribs, sending the demon flying up into the rafters. Before hitting the ceiling though, the demon sheds his human guise completely, dive bombing Negi with his newfound wings and slamming him hard into the auditorium wall. Coughing up blood in response, Negi squints at Wilhelm trying to shake his newfound double vision all the while cringing as the demon's hand is wrapped around his throat.

"You did take me by surprise with that little onslaught boy, but it doesn't seem that it was good enough." A small laugh emits from the demon before he continues. "It's funny, isn't it? I seem to recall one of your nightmares ending with you in this very spot. Funny, and fitting as well. Good bye Negi-kun. Happy to see you gave me a little bit of entertainment before the end…"

Luckily for the boy, his certain death is adverted as Wilhelm is bludgeoned by something. Three somethings to be exact. Opting to deal with this small annoyance before finishing off Negi, the demon turns around to see the Slime Sisters lying on the ground beneath him, each one frozen solid. Looking beyond his fallen subordinates, he sees a grinning Clyde and Kotaro, each flashing a victory sign at Wilhelm as if to mock him. Dismissing them for now, Wilhelm turns his attention back to Negi. Unfortunately for him, dismissing Negi in the first place wasn't a good idea either, as the boy has regained his bearings and throws a hard electrically charged punch right into the demon's face. Staggering back in pain, Wilhelm's demon face switches between his current demon one and his human version, contorting together and proving that the boy's blow did some serious damage. To add injury to injury, Asuna takes the opportunity to come in and roundhouse Wilhelm, grabbing Negi from his weakened grasp and clearing out in a fluid combination. With Negi out of the way, Kotaro reaches into his pocket and pulls out the magic bottle. Pulling the stopper out of it and pointing it at the pile of frozen/staggered demons, Kotaro watches on as the four are sucked into the bottle, grinning as he plugs the stopper in the top.

"Aw yeah!" Clyde grins as Kotaro stashes the sealing bottle away. "We showed them who's boss, eh!?"

"Damn straight!" Kotaro grins as Clyde and himself high five each other. Realizing what they have just done, both boys stare at each other eerily for a few moments before Kotaro adds in. "…That didn't happen."

"No, it didn't, munchkin." Clyde mutters, not really wanting to admit to the boy that he has a smidge of respect for him now. "That was amazing the way Negi pulled off those punches though. There was a ton of magic behind those and he didn't even have to use his staff or even an incantation! That was insane!"

Speaking of Negi, Asuna and him are sitting on the edge of the stage now, Negi still somewhat in a stupor. Frustrated with the boy and his stoic demeanor, the redhead smacks him on the back of the head, causing him to yelp out in pain. A few moments later, he's looking up at Asuna, tears welling in his eyes.

"What did you do that for, Asuna!? Why are you all of you hitting me?"

"I'm just trying to snap you out of whatever you did!" Asuna mutters, her eyes still wide from the spectacle. "How did you do that!? I thought your magic was sealed!"

"I…I thought it was too…" Negi murmurs, looking down at his left wrist to see no sign of the magic binding seal. "I guess that I managed to overpower it…"

"So what's the deal with that demon?" Asuna asks, prodding for answers. "It looked like you were familiar with him. So what's up?"

"Well, it's a long story…" Negi begins before being slapped on the back twice, once by each of his male allies.

"Way to go, Negi!" Kotaro cheers. "You showed that demon who was boss! Maybe I was wrong about some of you western mages after all! That was a hell of a fight! Makes me look forward to our rematch even more!"

"Thank you, Kotaro-kun…"

"Yeah, that was awesome!" Clyde chips in, rubbing the boy's head as he does so. "That was some pretty wicked magic you rolled out for that! That old geezer didn't know what hit him! Hope he doesn't think ill of us for his new home."

"Hey Clyde? Was that…really magic?"

"No, it wasn't magic. It was some pretty wicked magic, Chizuru!" Clyde grins as he responds to the confused girl in front of him before doing a double-take. "Ch…Chizuru!? Um, well, you see…funny thing about it being magic…um…"

"Did seem that there was something interesting about you, but who would have thought it would be actual magic?" Chizuru smirks, causing the blonde to sweat drop in response. "I think it's kind of romantic in a way…what do we have here?"

Turning her attention from Clyde to Kotaro, Chizuru's smirk broadens as she pulls at the boy's exposed ears. Chuckling as Kotaro fends her off and takes a couple nervous steps back, the well-endowed girl grabs a cloth from her vest pocket and puts it to the boy's cheek, stopping the bleeding from a cut that Kotaro's adrenaline caused him to ignore up until this point. Chuckling at his friend's motherly instincts, Clyde takes in a deep breath only to be dropped to the ground from behind. Wincing and feeling a pair of arms around him, Clyde manages to break free and turn to see his assailant, that being a gushing Haruna.

"Holy crap, Clyde-kun! You guys are so awesome!" The artist gushes as she embraces the boy again. "I have got to do a manga over this! This is just to much of a kick ass story to pass up! We're all going to be famous!"

"Did I say magic!? I…er, I meant special effects! Um…yeah! They're special effects! All of it!"

As the blonde continues to stammer, something else catches his eye; namely the simple fact that everybody in the class that doesn't know about magic is looking at him in shock, while the ones that do are shaking their heads in disbelief over Negi and Clyde's cover being blown. Taking a deep breath, the blonde wraps an arm around the still ecstatic manga whiz and carries on.

"Trust me Haruna. There is a perfectly reasonable explanation for all of the stunts we did. Let's just go backstage and get some punch, shall we? I can tell all of you about how we rigged this up."

* * *

"You should find a better way to do this, you know. I'm sure it's got to be a pain in the ass to pull the amnesia trick every other day." Asakura chuckles as she takes a sip of some non-magic punch. "Although, with all the lugging of teenagers around and the repairs you'll be doing for the school, you'll get ripped in no time."

"Yeah, I know I should, Kazumi, but this is the easiest way to go about it." Clyde rationalizes to his friend, shaking his head as he looks at his reflection in the sabotaged punch bowl. "If we weren't going to be turned into ermines before, we would have more than likely been after this little fiasco unless I did something like this. I'm just hoping that me and Negi don't wind up messing with anybody's long term memory…"

"Clyde!"

His ears perking up, the blonde pivots to the sound of Negi's voice, gasping in shock as he sees why Negi called his attention. While there are plenty of slumbering girls about the auditorium now, that is to be expected given Clyde's memory erasing activities. What wasn't to be expected, however, is something more grim. Everybody is present and accounted for, but there is only one catch…there are now 28 schoolgirls, a ghost, and two statues…

* * *

**The Stat Line: **Started 2/15/08, Completed 3/26/08, Posted 3/26/08

**The Follow Up:** And so, the Cultural Festival arc comes to an end, but with a cost, it seems. Who are the two unfortunate souls that have been the victims of Wilhelm's wrath? Only one way to find out and that is to read on. Apologies as well if the fighting seemed a little awkward or if Kotaro seemed a bit out of character. It's been awhile since I've written Kotaro and as anybody who knows me will tell, action scenes are something of a weak point for me for the most part. Also apologies if this chapter seemed a little clunky as a majority of it was cut off from Chapter 15 to keep it's length under control. That being aside, I hope everybody enjoyed the read and will let me know if there's something they liked/disliked/whatever. That be what the review button, private messages and whatnot are for. (gryn) See you all around with Chapter 16!

_-Midnight_


	17. Aftermath: Chase For a Cure

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue. Tax refund came back and is already gone, so you'd be out of luck.

**Author's Notes:** Well, I've been gone a little later than I was originally planning, but no matter. My little break has come to an end and I am recharged and ready to do some more of that writing thing. Last time we left our little class, the disaster of a school play actually wound up pretty minor in comparison to the disaster that followed it in the form of two of 3-A's students becoming very unlucky in the form that they are now statues. Who got affected? What can be done? Any hope? Well, read on and find out. One thing for you to know as well: This is meant to be a setup chapter, so for those of you expecting explosions and action and epicness of that particular variety, sorry. But now that we got that out of the way, on with the show…

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 17**

* * *

"Clyde!"

Ears perking up, the blonde turns his attention to the small teacher who is calling for his attention. After a split second, the look of post-battle cheer on the boy's face is replaced with a look of shock and horror as he sees just what Negi is pointing out: that being among the sleeping girls in the auditorium there are a couple that aren't exactly sleeping, simply because they have been petrified. Looking at the first victim, whom Negi is looking at in a panic, it takes a while for the blonde to register her name, but he eventually remembers her as Nodoka Miyazaki. As for the second girl, Clyde recognizes her a lot quicker due to the fact that it is one of his roommates.

"Chizuru!" Clyde runs over to the girl turned statue and shakes his head in frustration. "No good…damnit! What gives? Two minutes ago she was fine!"

Gritting his teeth and running his hand through his hair as if to help the thought process, Clyde can't help but let a tear fall from his eye for his friend. The boy is brought out of his stupor by hearing someone muttering to themselves behind him. Pivoting about, the boy comes face to face with Evangeline.

"You got to know something to reverse this, don't you!?" Clyde asks as he shakes the vampire by the shoulders. "Hell, you've been doing magic for centuries!"

"It isn't that simple." Evangeline coldly replies, taking the time to shove the boy off of her. "Besides, even if I did know some way, who's to say that I would help? I am evil, after all."

"Why you little brat…"

Clyde's anger gets the best of him as he makes a lunge for the vampire, being stopped as Asakura and Yuna both grab one of his arms to hold him back.

"Come on!" Clyde barks, trying to fight his way free. "We don't have time for whatever game she's trying to play!"

"Calm down, Clyde!" Asakura growls as she fights to keep her grip on the blonde. "Attacking her is just going to make matters worse!"

"Yeah!" Yuna agrees. "Come on, Clyde-kun! This isn't like you!"

"We've got to save them somehow, and if she refuses to be part of the solution, she's part of the prob…"

Clyde stops mid-rant as he finds himself feeling incredibly sleepy in a split second. Shaking her head sadly, Ku Fei adjusts her shirt after chopping Clyde in the back of the neck. The last thing that the teen's blurry vision is able to see is the vampire standing in front of him shaking her head.

"You need to learn to stay calm, Clyde Metro…otherwise you are going to find yourself being real dead, real fast."

"Sorry, Clyde-bozu…" Ku mutters sadly, watching as the now smirking Evangeline walks towards Negi, who is in the middle of a similar panic attack.

"Master!" Negi exclaims as he notices the vampire making her approach. "How can we help them?"

"Help?" Evangeline responds, putting a finger to her chin. "What if there isn't anything that could be done for them?"

Negi's response to Eva's bluntness is dropping to his knees and crying for his students, quite a bit different from Clyde's outburst of anger a few moments earlier. However, Negi's breakdown is brief as he is knocked to the floor by a sharp Eva backhand.

"Boya, if you ever give up like that again, you are going to have to find yourself a new master." The vampire coldly retorts. "I didn't say that there was nothing to be done. I just asked a rhetorical question. You shouldn't expect the answers to be given to you just because you are emotional. Go ahead and think of it as cruel, but it is a cruel world out there. Although…"

Eva pauses for a brief moment before continuing on.

"…to be honest, I suppose that I can't really blame you. Especially seeing as how this is the second time that this demon has done this to you."

"Second time?"

The odd statement is enough to garner Asuna's attention, who goes from consoling Konoka over her Library Club friend to being in the small vampire's face in a matter of seconds. "What the hell do you mean by that?"

"Boya has never told you?" Evangeline replies, a very small smirk of amusement being etched on her face. "Hmm…judging by the look you're giving me, I'd say that's a no…tell you what. All of you meet me at my cabin in an hour. I think there's some things we all need to go over."

Walking from the auditorium, Eva stops a few feet from the door and glances over at Clyde, who is in a daze and in the middle of picking himself off the floor.

"By the way, janitor. I would suggest cleaning this place up and moving your statue classmates to the cabin. No sense in people asking any more questions than they need to."

Clyde thinks of retorting to the girl, but his neck still tender from Ku's karate chop quickly opts against it. Grumbling in frustration, Clyde looks over the stone figure of Chizuru, trying to figure out the best way to get her out of the auditorium and without breaking her. Groaning in frustration as he tries to lift her, he finds the load a lot easier as Negi and Kotaro both help him support the girl/statue's weight.

"Negi…Kotaro, thanks guys."

"Don't need to thank me, idiot." Kotaro mutters as the trio walks towards the door. "I'm on probation. I don't need any more trouble than necessary."

"Don't mind him, Clyde." Negi replies. "Let's just get Naba-san and Nodoka-san to the cabin…"

* * *

Thunder booms and lighting lights up the night sky of Mahora, appropriate enough given the grim circumstances. A short distance from the school district in a wooded area is a cabin, inside which Negi and his friends are nervously pacing about and discussing various ideas about how to help their friends. Eventually, Evangeline comes down a staircase and sits at a table, motioning for Negi to sit down as well. As the youth sits in his chair, him and the others in the room turn their attention to the front door as Clyde stumbles in with what looks to be a completely stuffed backpack slung over his shoulder. The attention is focused on him even further as he trips over a stool and face plants. Shaking her head in frustration as Asakura and Yuna help pick the boy up, Eva slams her fist down on the table, snapping everybody's attention back towards her and Negi.

"Now boya, first thing's first. Why don't you tell your little friends about your dealings with that demon before?" Eva smirks, looking at the shock on the youth's face. "We'll get to your petrified students soon enough. Don't you think it would be wise to answer the questions that are going through the minds of your allies first?"

"Eva, take it easy on the kid!" Asuna snaps at the vampire, putting a reassuring hand on the small teacher's shoulder. "Let him get a grip on things first, would ya?"

"Look, Kagurazaka, I'm only going to say this once, so seeing as how you're a baka, pay close attention." Eva snarls, clearly not pleased over the redhead second guessing her. "I don't have time to waste with your disagreements, and neither do your classmates. Let boya explain what he knows so you all have an idea of what exactly you're dealing with."

Asuna grits her teeth and thinks of retorting, but Negi placing his hand on hers causes the girl's anger to evaporate, if only slightly.

"Master is right, Asuna. I'm going to have to talk about it eventually, so let's just get this out of the way." Negi sighs, obviously not thrilled about having to remember what seems to be a painful memory. "Well it was about five years ago…"

* * *

"…and that just about covers it." Negi finishes, exhaling deeply at the end of his story. Shaking his head and wiping the sweat from his brow, Negi glances around the room to see that the gloom has increased significantly with his tale becoming public knowledge.

"…So that's why you want to be a Magister Magi…" Asuna mutters to herself, wiping a tear from her eye as she does so.

"It's so sad!" Konoka wails, wrapping the unsuspecting Negi in a bear hug. "Just terrible!"

"Me sorry, Negi-bozu…" Ku Fei replies, putting her hand on the small sensei's shoulder. "I do whatever I can to help."

"Me too, Negi-kun!" Yuna shouts, a half smile on her face as she shoots the teacher a thumbs up.

"Wait, wait, wait." Asakura shakes her head and stands up from her chair. "No disrespect Negi-kun, but what you're saying is that Bookstore and Chizuru are screwed, right?"

"Asakura! Cut it out!" Setsuna snaps from across the table. "There's no reason to make anyone feel any worse than they already do!"

"Hey, I'm a reporter." Asakura bluntly states. "Part of my job is discovering the facts, no matter how tough they may be to swallow. If Negi-kun's village was petrified and is still that way, how are we supposed to save those two?"

"I didn't expect you to give up so easily either, Asakura." Evangeline chuckles. "I thought another part of your job was to not take no for an answer."

"It sounds bad, but Asakura-san does have a point." Ako nervously replies. "I mean, it isn't like Negi-sensei can just wave a magic wand and make it all better."

"Hmm…well, I guess I'm going to have to let the cat out of the bag on this one. I have to say that I'm disappointed in you though boya. You should have noticed this right away." Evangeline smirks at the confused teacher before continuing on. "That demon was only going at you half heartedly with those petrification blasts. He wanted to scare you into fighting, not turn you into a statue. The two brats just got caught in the crossfire."

"So we can help them somehow…" Kaede replies, glancing over at the vampire.

"Maybe." Eva huffs. "If I remember correctly from what I read in one of the moron's books, Claude Metro came up with a cure for low grade petrification. It's probably your best bet, really."

"Um…Eva-chan?" Konoka taps the vampire on the shoulder, earning a death glare for her troubles. "No offense, but couldn't I just use my magic to cure them if it's a weaker spell?"

"Um…Headmaster's brat?" Eva spews back, clearly not thrilled over being second guessed. "That'd be nice and all, but you don't have the training or knowledge yet to cast something like that."

"Hmm…" Konoka ponders, rubbing her chin for a brief moment before a light bulb seemingly turns on in her head. "I know! Me and Negi-kun can pactio again! It worked in Kyoto, after all!"

"Pactio…?" Negi blinks in confusion before remembering how Wilhelm had dispelled his pactios with the entire class. Gulping nervously, the teacher takes a few steps back from the grinning girl. "K…Konoka-san, think about what you're doing!"

"Aw, c'mon Negi-kun." Konoka giggles as she keeps advancing towards the youth. "Why are you so shy? We've done a pactio before, after all. Are you afraid that it's going to make somebody in here jealous?"

Asuna's eyes nearly pop out of her head at Konoka's last words, not so much the words themselves, but for the simple fact that Konoka was staring right at her and smirking while she was saying them. Muttering under her breath, Asuna glares angrily at the brown haired girl, who at this point is doing a great job of pretending that she didn't suggest anything. Negi for his part is still taking slow steps backwards, hoping to sneak away from Konoka's little idea. No such luck for the teacher though, as he is given away by a voice from the floor.

"Hey Konoka! I got the magic circle all drawn up! Fire when ready toots!"

Sure enough, much to the boy's shock, he finds himself standing right in the middle of a magic circle when he looks down, locking stares with the smirking Chamo who is doing little to hide the piece of chalk that he drew the circle with. Looking back up, Negi finds himself mere inches from Konoka, knees bent so her face is on the same level with the small teacher's.

"Come on Negi-kun…let's save our friends!"

"Well…I suppose you're right, but…"

And whatever Negi's point was going to be will forever be unknown as he is cut off by having Konoka's lips pressed to his. Negi struggles as a reflex for a brief moment before deciding to stand still and go through with it for the good of his students. As the two youths lips disconnect, the blinding light that accompanied the activation of the magic circle subsides, leaving behind only a mere card in it's wake. Smiling, Konoka takes the card from the floor and looks it over, noting it to be exact to the card her and Negi had during their first pactio. The girl's joy is short lived, however, as she notices that Nodoka and Chizuru are still in their petrified states. Confused, both Konoka and Negi look over at Evangeline, who scoffs and shakes her head.

"Idiots…" Eva grumbles before pointing out something that probably would've been useful knowledge before the pactio was made. "Konoka Konoe, the only reason the pactio between you and boya cured everybody's petrification in Kyoto worked was because Negi was very close to death at that point. Most of the time, when one imbued with magic is nearing their own demise, their subconscious will kick in and dig deep for whatever magic the body can muster. That is why the pactio you two had was able to kick out so much magic."

"It was worth a shot at least…" Konoka responds sadly as she looks at the pactio card. Noting her friend's sadness, Setsuna brings up something the vampire mentioned earlier.

"You said something about a cure for low grade petrification in a book, didn't you Eva-san?"

"Hmm? Why, yes I did." Eva smirks. "Nice to see that somebody was paying attention when I was talking earlier. Like I said, the moron's father developed a cure for lower grade petrification. Truth be told, it was actually Claude Metro's research that saved your cousin's life, boya."

"So we can save them!" Negi exclaims, clearly a lot happier than he was a few moments before. "So all we have to do is gather a few things and make a cure?"

"It's not going to be that easy."

The smile on Negi's face diminishes a little bit at the response, especially considering that the source of it wasn't Evangeline, but rather Clyde. Turning his attention towards the blonde, all Negi can find himself doing is shooting the boy a dumb look. Sighing, Clyde takes the opportunity to elaborate.

"After the half pint mentioned something about my dad having a cure, it jogged my memory. A lot of the ingredients that the potion will use are common enough, but three of them are a little harder to come by." Clyde pauses briefly, pondering his next words. "One of them can only be found in the Magic Country."

"So we'll go and get it!" Asuna shouts, the grin on her face being that of a confident leader. "It isn't like there's much of a choice, right?"

"Well, that's true…" Clyde concedes, the stern look on his face not showing any signs of disappearing any time soon. "…but it isn't exactly like these are the kind of things you can just go in and ask for, you know? There's a reason that they are hard to come by. If anybody wants out, it's fine by me. I don't think anybody would think any less of you."

"Sounds like my kind of thing." Kotaro grins, cracking his knuckles in anticipation. "I'm not chickening out."

"Damn right!" Asakura replies, flipping a thumbs up for extra emphasis.

"We no going to fail!" Ku Fei chips in, actually taking a combat stance as if to prove her commitment.

"I suppose I could work for free, just this once."

"I'll do whatever I can! We can do it, Negi-kun!"

"If Ojou-sama is in, so am I."

One by one, the girls voice their support for the mostly unknown plan. After a vast majority of the team voices their support, all eyes go towards a certain cosplayer with a grimace on her face and who is currently rubbing her forehead in frustration. Chuckling, Asakura walks towards the girl, putting an arm around her shoulder and bringing her face mere inches away from hers.

"Hmm? Don't tell me you're going to chicken out, Chiu." The reporter beams before putting some pressure on the girl's neck by tightening her grip slightly. "Don't be a spoilsport."

"I'm not a spoilsport!" Chisame snaps back, remaining quiet for a few moments before finally responding. "I guess if I was in their shoes and petrified, you guys would do the same for me…fine, I'm in too."

Listening on and smiling, Negi walks to the head of the table and sits down.

"Chisame…everyone…thank you. So, Clyde, what exactly are we going to need and where are we going to get it?"

Clyde smiles and nods at the boy, looking through his backpack for the aforementioned book. After a few moments of fumbling about, the blonde's smile is accompanied by a nervous chuckle. After another minute or so, the boy's nervous chuckling and smile fade away into cursing under his breath and a frustrated scowl.

"Looking for this?"

Ears perking up, Clyde looks towards the source of the voice to notice a smirking Evangeline holding a book in her right hand. Shaking her head at the youth, Eva tosses the book at him. The scowl on Clyde's face remains though as he stares up at the cheeky vampire.

"Oh come on, Metro. You should know to do better at hiding your magical valuables. How the hell none of your roommates found out about your little secret I'll never know…"

"I don't feel like getting hit again, so I'm going to pretend that you didn't steal one of my books." Clyde replies through clenched teeth. Doing his best to put the incident behind him, Clyde flips through the returned book, muttering to himself as he skims over the pages. Finally, his face brightens up as he points to the middle of a page.

"Here we go…Stone Ward Salve…vital ingredients: Thornblood Sage…water from the Cotts Spring…Ratelga Root. Guess I was wrong on it being a potion. My bad."

"You lost me at Stone Ward Salve." Asuna replies, the look of confusion on her face adding to the truth of her statement. "Negi, have you even heard of any of this stuff?"

"Well…no." The youth admits. "But then again, I didn't specialize in alchemy in school. Just the basics…so I take it you know where to find these things, Clyde?"

"Thanks to the old man's notes, yeah." The blonde replies as he looks through the pages. "I've actually been to the Cotts Spring personally, so I guess I'll take that one. Hmm…"

"I guess I'll take the Thornblood Sage." Negi breaks the brief silence. "So where is that located at?"

"A mage's village in the Amazon…mage's portal network can get you within about three miles of it, but you'll have to foot the rest of the way due to security reasons. They're nitpicky about people entering their village, apparently." Negi looks at Clyde with a confused look. "Hey, I'm just reading what's written in the book. So it looks like Ratelga Root is up to Kotaro…sucks for you. Looks like you get to do some mountain climbing."

"Like I haven't climbed a mountain before." Kotaro scoffs, stretching his arms behind his back. "So where exactly am I supposed to go?"

"Well, fortunately, it looks like dear old dad drew up some teleportation circles…which is good, because otherwise we'd have one hell of a field trip on our hands. Chamo can draw up the circles…trust me, I can't draw. I'd wind up getting us all sent to…well, I don't want to know where I'd get us sent to."

"Well, alright." Negi nods, a small smirk of confidence slowly forming on his face. "Let's do this, you two. Seeing as how that's a research book, I'm assuming that your father has sketches or something in there?"

"Yeah, there is Negi…unlike me, the old man could actually draw."

"So fork over the pictures and let's get going!"

"Nice to see the mutt is gung-ho over something."

"Shut up, moron! And take that stupid hat off!"

"It's a cavalier hat! There's nothing stupid about it at all!"

"Shut up already!"

Those three words, combined with the loud thunk of a fist hitting the wooden table behind them breaks up the verbal scuffle between the Observer and the hanyo. Turning around, the looks of anger on the two boys' faces disappear as they note the angry look on Asuna's.

"Argue all you want on your own time! I don't have time for it, and neither do Bookstore or Naba-san!" The girl huffs in frustration before continuing. "Give us the pictures so we can go get this stuff, OK?"

"Sorry." Kotaro looks at the ground, slightly taken aback by Asuna's brashness.

"I'm sorry too. You're right. We have to go save…" Clyde trails off. "Wait, what?"

"Well, we are going with you guys." Asuna grins. "Negi tends to get himself in trouble when we're not around."

"Wait a minute! You can't be serious!" Negi waves his arms in refusal. "As your teacher, I can't let you endanger yourselves!"

"Well as your friends, we can't let you guys endanger yourselves either." Asakura points out. "Come on, we'll be careful."

"But none of you even have a pactio anymore!" Negi points out, having to know somewhere deep inside that he's fighting a losing argument.

"Yeah…about that…listen, don't take this the wrong way, Negi…" Asuna smirks as she casually walks towards the small teacher. Blinking in confusion, Negi nervously takes a couple of steps backwards, not quite sure what Asuna is planning. Soon enough, Negi finds himself unable to take anymore back steps as he is up against one of the walls in the cabin. Asuna can't help but chuckle as she bends her knees slightly coming face to face with the youth. Putting two and two together, Negi looks down below his feet to notice a cheeky ermine standing on the outside of a magic circle.

"Chamo!"

The boy's shout at his familiar is all the distraction that Asuna needs as she quickly moves in locks lips with Negi, causing the dormant magic circle under the two youths to spring to life in a flash of light. Both youngsters gasp, slightly taken aback by the magic flowing through their bodies. In a few moments, the light subsides, leaving behind a blushing Negi, a smirking Asuna, and a card on the floor where the circle used to be. Still blushing, Negi receives a fist to the back of his head courtesy of Asuna.

"I told you not to take it the wrong way, didn't I?"

"You didn't need to hit me, though!" Negi protests, rubbing the sore spot on the back of his head. "Are you sure about this, Asuna?"

"What? Me doing a pactio with you again wasn't proof enough that I'm sure?" Asuna asks, slightly insulted.

"Okay, okay!" Negi waves his hands in front of him to dismiss Asuna's accusation. "I guess we should figure out who is going where…I guess you're with me, Asuna. Konoka and Setsuna too."

"Not Konoka." Clyde quickly retorts, earning raised eyebrows and confused looks all around. "Somebody's going to have to stay behind and study over the recipe…and since I'm going to play fetch myself, Konoka's our girl."

"I've never made anything like that before though, Clyde-kun!"

"The vampire can help walk you through it. And before you ask why not have Evangeline do it herself, you don't want someone with dark magic making a potion or something similar meant to heal. You don't want the bad magic vibes…might even make the petrification worse."

"The moron is right." Eva helpfully points out. "If I were to make it…well, it wouldn't be too beneficial to those petrified brats. Looks like you're going to be their only hope, Konoka Konoe."

"Well…alright." Konoka nods in agreement. "I'll do my best, Negi-kun!"

"Well, glad we got that settled." Eva scoffs as she puts the book in the girl's hands. "Hand over those sketches and get to studying. A lot to go over in such a short period of time."

"I guess I'm with Clyde-kun then?" Yuna asks, looking at the pactio card she is currently holding in her hand.

"I guess so, partner." Clyde smirks at the girl, looking around at who else is left. "Ako, Kazumi, you guys want to go with us too?"

"Sure." Ako smiles before adding. "Yuna would probably get herself into trouble unchecked, after all."

"Hey! No need to be mean, Ako!"

Asakura chuckles slightly at the friends trading barbs back and forth with each other before putting an arm around Clyde's shoulder.

"Let me guess…you asked me to come along because you thought that I would follow after you guys anyway, didn't you?"

"Like you would just stay here and not try to follow." Clyde smirks. "I know you a little better than that, Kazumi."

"Heh…nice to see."

"Well, that's fine. Let's go!"

Kotaro cracks his knuckles in anticipation and makes his way towards the door of the cabin, stopping in his tracks as he feels a hand fall on his shoulder. Spinning around, he sees Clyde shaking his head at him.

"Now, now…you don't think that we're going to let you go and do this on your own, do you? It wasn't too long ago when you were trying to kill Negi and myself, after all."

"What, do you think I'm going to run away or something?" Kotaro sneers at the blonde. "I made a promise to do this, so I'm going to follow through. I don't break my word."

"Touching and all…but you're still not going by yourself. Let's see…"

"I'll go with him." Kaede volunteers, walking towards the hanyo. "I trust you, Kotaro-san. Just consider me to be extra help."

"Me too!" Ku pipes in, making her way towards Kotaro as well. "We have fun!"

"Hmm…I suppose I can keep an eye on him. Make sure he doesn't try anything." Mana quips, not as trusting of Kotaro's motives as Ku Fei and Kaede are. "Hey, I'm a mercenary. I need more than a verbal guarantee."

"Whatever you say, princess." Kotaro scoffs as he makes his way to the door. "Come on, let's get this teleportation circle drawn already."

After a few moments, Negi nods at Chamo to follow after the black haired youth and his accomplices. Nodding in agreement, the ermine gallops after the group, the sketch of Ratelga Root in his mouth. Clyde looks over to Negi with a slight look of disbelief on his face, clearly not as trusting of the hanyo as Negi is.

"It will be fine, Clyde. Kotaro-kun gave us his word. He seems to be pretty honorable, at least."

Sighing in defeat, Clyde nods to the boy in understanding. The blonde looks as though he is going to say something further, but is abruptly cut off as he feels a tugging on his shoulder. Pivoting around, he sees a rather nervous looking Yuna.

"Clyde-kun…um…I think I need to have a talk with my father…before he finds out about this from anyone else."

"It'd probably be a good idea." Clyde concedes. "You…want me to go with you?"

"Sure. I'd definitely appreciate it."

"Hey, that's what partners are for." The blonde grins as he turns towards Negi. "Since you'll probably be gone by the time I get back, I wish you guys luck."

"Thanks, Clyde. You too."

* * *

**Chapter 18 Preview:** Student Number 25, Chisame Hasegawa here…and still wondering just why in the hell I had to get dragged into this whole "magic" mess in the first place. Anyways, Negi-sensei, Asuna, Setsuna, and myself are all in some Amazon jungle, trying to stumble across some magic village or something like that. The "jungle girl" cosplay idea I've gotten from this trip is about the only good thing about it, as we find ourselves getting attacked nearly right off the bat by this nut job of a redhead. What's going to happen? Find out next Fallout…here's hoping we don't get killed.

* * *

**The Stat Line: **Started 8/03/08, Completed 8/28/08

**The Follow Up:** So it's been five months…and it's a set up chapter. All apologies for the lacklusterness of the chapter as it turned out to be a lot more dialogue driven than I was hoping, but rest assured the next few chapters will more than make up for it. Action, drama, excitement…here's hoping it's in the cards. Who am I kidding? Since I've recovered from the five month Fallout drought, it will be in the cards. As usual, reviews/comments/PMs, and even flames are accepted. Thanks for being patient and I'll see you see you soon with more Fallout…and it sure as hell isn't going to take nearly half a year this time around. Promise!

_-Midnight_


	18. Team Negi: Welcome to the Jungle!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I do own are my ideas, so please don't sue.

**Author's Notes:** Well here we are again, and thankfully not five months in between updates this time! Hooray! Anyways, last time we left our favorite little teacher, he was in the process of figuring out a way to cure the two statues that he currently has in his class roster. Let's see how he does for his part of chipping in for a cure, shall we?

* * *

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 18**

"_Hmm…you certainly had an interesting performance at the Cultural Festival, didn't you, Negi-kun?"_

_The speaker, Headmaster Konoe, alternates his glance in between the boy sitting across the desk from him and the magic bottle that he holds in his own hands. Looking down at the floor in shame, Negi finally lifts his head up to look at the Headmaster, the look on his face not a happy one, but not necessarily an angry one either._

"…_Yes sir. I truly am sorry. I know that words can't help Nodoka-san and Naba-san, but I am going to do everything I can to cure them." Negi pauses briefly, the look on his face changing from one of depression to a more stern one. "Clyde's father came up with a cure in one of his books…"_

"_Stone Ward Salve." The old man cuts in. "I know all about it. Ever since Clyde-kun became your Observer, I've been doing research on him and his family. I take it that you are wanting to search for ingredients, then?"_

"_Clyde and I are going to, yeah." Negi replies in response, quickly adding in another sentence. "No disrespect, sir, but since the demon was after me, I feel it is my responsibility to my students to help them."_

"_Well…I could send out mages to gather what is required for the cure…but I have a feeling that you would go even if I said no…very well. You and your companions have my blessing."_

"_Companions?" Negi asks in response._

"_Well, I doubt that Asuna-kun and the others would just stay here on campus and do nothing." The Headmaster retorts, Negi swearing that he can catch a slight hind of playfulness in the man's voice at this point. "I suppose it is a good thing that it is a weekend. No need to have any unwanted questions, after all. Best of luck, Negi-kun."_

_Given the green light from the Headmaster, Negi bows his head in respect._

"_Thank you, sir! I promise that I'll protect the girls with my life!"_

"_I trust you will, Negi-kun." The Headmaster nods to the youth as he turns to leave. "Oh, one more thing!"_

_Negi stops in his tracks and pivots around, looking at Konoe confused._

"_Don't be so hard on yourself. It's not your fault that demon came here. Burdening yourself with guilt is not going to help your students any. Remember that."_

"_Yes sir."_

* * *

"Well, it's certainly hot enough…"

Those five words are enough to snap Negi out of his thoughts. Looking about at the tropical surroundings, the young teacher can't really argue with the commentary from Chisame. The lush greenery, strange animal noises, and sheer humidity and heat make it clear for the ensemble of youths traveling through the jungle that this definitely isn't Mahora anymore. Trudging through the trees and vines, Negi wipes the sweat from his brow as he feels somebody tapping him on the shoulder. Turning about, he sees a somewhat concerned Asuna looking at him.

"You sure you're okay?" Asuna asks the boy. "I thought you said the Headmaster told you not to feel guilty."

"I know, but I can't help it." Negi responds sadly. "That demon was after you and me, Asuna. Everybody else was just collateral damage to him. Naba-san and Nodoka-san got petrified because of us."

"Negi-sensei, you need to do what the Headmaster said." Setsuna cuts in. "How are you going to help them if you can't focus on what we're supposed to be doing?"

"You have a point, but…"

"But nothing!" Asuna snaps at the youth, causing him to actually step backwards in response to the sharpness in her voice. "I feel bad too, but feeling bad isn't going to help them out! We owe it to both of them to find this Thorn Sage or whatever the hell it is so we can heal them!"

"Listen to them, sensei. We all agree with the Headmaster on this one." Chisame adds in her two cents on the matter her voice dropping as she mutters her next words to herself. "Of course, don't thank me for telling you to talk to the old fart about this so we don't get in deeper trouble than we probably already are…although this is giving me a good idea for a 'Jungle Girl' theme…"

"Broken record time, Aniki, but the ane-sans are right!" Chamo pipes in, happily taking the opportunity to scurry out of his master's knapsack. "We have to focus on…"

"OK, OK! I get it guys!" An exasperated Negi retorts. "We'll do the best we can and hopefully save them…no, we will save them."

"Damn right, Negi!"

"Now you're talking, Aniki!"

"Hey, not to be the proverbial pain in the ass…" Chisame starts. "…but what exactly are these 'security reasons' that the blonde idiot was talking about?"

"Hmm…" Negi ponders as he strokes his chin. "Personally, I don't know much about the village we're going to. I've heard of some sects of mages wanting to be self sufficient and isolated from the majority of the world, both magical and mundane. That would be my best guess, anyways."

"So a bunch of selfish jerks are holding medicine for themselves?" Asuna replies with the first thing that comes to her mind.

"It's not that simple, Asuna. They might be afraid that people would come in and mess things up for their community. They see it as a form of self-preservation. As for anything medical, it would be a safe guess that living in the rainforest like they do, the people would want to be prepared for any diseases that might befall them. With having a portal so close though, I would say that it's a safe bet that this particular community isn't too worried about having people ruin their livelihoods so much as them wanting their privacy."

After listening to Negi's little explanation, Asuna nods in understanding. Not particularly pleased that they have to be marching through a rainforest to find the proverbial "needle in a haystack" village and a magical plant, but understanding nonetheless. The quintet continues on through the woods, a few words being exchanged between them every so often as they continue their journey, hoping that they are able to find their destination sooner rather than later…

* * *

"OK, Konoe. Show me what you can do!"

Nodding in confidence, Konoka gets to work on her task for the vampire. What might that task be? A simple practice potion. Stroking her chin as she looks over the various chemicals, plants, and various alchemical equipment, the girl grabs a mortar and pestle and begins grinding up a couple of green leaves and orange colored berries. Feeling a couple of sweat beads forming on her forehead, the brown haired girl quickly dismisses them from her thoughts as she concentrates, scraping the ground up mixture from the bowl and into a large tube, following it up by slowly trickling a bright blue liquid from a nearby bottle into the tube. Grinning in triumph at her success so far, the smile on Konoka's face disappears fairly quickly as the girl accidentally knocks over a bottle, causing a dark purple liquid to seep out onto the table.

"Eva-chan!" Konoka yelps in response to the vampire's actions, eyes racing back and forth from the tipped over bottle to the smirking cause of the spill.

"You'd better do something. Who knows what will happen if some of those chemicals mix in their basic states? Might not do anything, might turn colors, might blow up my cabin and kill both of us. I'd suggest you hurry up and clean that up."

Deciding that the vampire makes a good point, Konoka quickly moves to clean up the spilled liquid, brushing the table with a nearby rag. Her work done, Konoka looks down at the rag, tossing it from her hand as she notices smoke rising from it. Unfortunately, there is still enough of the rag left intact that the crumpled up ball of cloth knocks over another bottle, this one not having as kind of a reaction as it causes a small explosion, leaving behind a smoldering table and two soot covered girls. Wiping the filth from her face, Evangeline stares disapprovingly at Konoka, who is currently chuckling rather nervously.

"Be happy that I intentionally gave you ingredients that were toned down for this little exercise, Konoe. Once more, from the top. If you can't make a simple practice potion, you aren't going to have a shot at that Stone Ward Salve."

"Sorry, Eva-chan."

"No apologies." Eva huffs as she walks a few feet over to another table decked out with various alchemical equipment. "Pay better attention this time. I can promise you that this particular set up will have a little more of a kick to it if you mess up."

Gulping in fear, a wary Konoka nervously nods her head in agreement.

"I'll do my best!"

"Hope so…now start looking over the potion recipe. For this one, you need to…"

* * *

"Let's see…there we are!"

Negi grins in triumph as he looks up from the sheet of paper that he has been reading directions off of, folding it up for the time being and sticking it in his jeans pocket as he runs towards his discovery. The discovery? A silver barked tree. Definitely enough to make the youthful explorers in the jungle stop and stare. After taking in the sight for a few moments, Negi brings his attention back to his directions, nearly fumbling the folded up sheet of paper due to his over eagerness.

"So this is what we've been looking for?" Asuna asks puzzled before her voice changes to a slightly ore sarcastic tone. "Wow, that was really hard to find! I don't know how we could have ever done it! So what am I supposed to grab off of this thing? Bark?"

"Well, actually Asuna…" Negi begins, only to be cut off by the redhead scoffing.

"Leafs, then? Swell." The papergirl mutters as she looks for a limb low enough for her to grab onto. Smirking as she finds one, Asuna bends her knees and leaps up towards the branch, effortlessly grabbing onto it. Negi watches on, impressed with the leap and finding himself briefly wondering why she isn't Yuna's teammate on the basketball team before he is brought back to reality by Chisame shaking his shoulder.

"Hey, snap out of it, Sensei! We got a job to do!"

"Sorry, Chisame-san." Negi bashfully replies before turning his attention back to Asuna. "Asuna, this isn't what we're looking for! We're looking for Thornblood Sage!"

"We are?" Asuna responds, the Baka Red side of her shining through at it's brightest at this point. "Well why in the hell were you so overjoyed when we found this tree then!?"

"Because it should only be another two miles north of here to the village!"

"You got that excited over a landmark? Come on, Negi! Who cares if it's a silver barked tree…that glistens beautifully in the sun…"

Negi can't help but chuckle at Asuna's last comment, the beauty of the tree finally coming around to the redhead. The boy's chuckling is short lived though as an earth shattering roar rips through the forest around them. Asuna in particular is taken aback by the sound, as it seems to have come from directly above her. Quickly brushing her initial fear aside, she slowly looks up into the emerald hued leafs of the tree, noticing that some of them seem to be falling out of the tree. Further examining by the girl brings her to a strange revelation; namely the fact that whatever is falling is much too quick to be leafs. Asuna's hunch proves to be correct, as the "leafs" let out a vicious snarl, Asuna reaching for her pactio card in response. Unfortunately for the redhead, whatever has came down at her is moving quicker than she has anticipated, resulting in her being pinned to the branch before getting her pactio card out. Shaking the cobwebs out of her head, Asuna opens her eyes to find herself staring into the face of what looks to vaguely be a tiger. The shade of the beast's fur is a similar emerald hue to that of the tree's leafs. Asuna can't help but feel a small pang of fear in her as the beast's eyes focus on her, looking for all the world like fiery embers. Of course, the fangs protruding from the tiger's mouth do little to help either; the ivory daggers looking to be so sharp that just gazing at them would make a person feel like they've been sliced into a thousand little pieces. A rather unfortunate feeling that is currently settling in the pit of the paper girl's stomach.

"Asuna!"

Not really being one to wait around for one of his students to become a meal for an abnormally colored magical beast, Negi quickly reaches for his staff while Setsuna is quick to leap into the tree to attempt an Asuna rescue. However, both of the youths find their rescue attempts cut short as each has an arrow land in front of them. Looking in the tree for the source of the projectiles, Negi can't help but notice that the tiger in the tree, while pinning Asuna firmly to the ground, isn't as nearly malicious as one would expect such an evil looking beast to be. Any and all thoughts about the somewhat docile creature are quickly laid to rest as a cheerful male voice rings out from the leafs of the tree.

"I don't miss twice, children!

Gazes now directed towards the leafy canopy of the tree, the cheery voice chuckles as its hidden owner moves about. A brief second later, a finger snap results in the tiger like creature releasing Asuna from her pinned position on the ground. Dusting herself off while keeping her eyes locked on the green beast, the incensed redhead shouts at her savior of sorts.

"Okay, you mind telling me what the hell is going on here!? Is there a reason why I shouldn't come up in that tree and cut you into ribbons!?"

"Sugar, you come into our jungle, frolicking around like you own the place, and you're the one that's angry?" The cheerful voice responds. "That kind of seems a little strange to me that you would want to shred little old me for that. Excuse me."

A little bit of loud rustling later and a figure descends from the branches above. Asuna and Setsuna keep their focus on the flanked man as he shakes the leafs from his long dust brown hair, longbow clenched in his right hand. If not for the long hair, either of the girls would probably call him a commando of sorts, as the green tank top, camouflage pants, and black boots would certainly attest to. Scratching his chin stubble and focusing his brown eyes on the beast that is now kneeled in front of him, the man clears his throat and begins speaking.

"Well now…good afternoon, children." The man grins as he stretches his arms behind his back. "My name is Jericho. I'm a defender of sorts for the mage village out here. So, what brings you to this fine little isolated chunk of the mundane world?"

"Well…" Asuna stalls, slightly taken aback by the man, her cheeks flushed with color. On the ground, Negi and Chisame look at each other and share confused glances before the net idol speaks. Or yells, rather.

"Baka Red, get over your damn crush, already! We got something important to do, remember!? And one of those important things isn't for you to hit on older guys!"

"Crush?" Jericho asks, the look of amusement very clear on his face. "Well, that is very flattering, but I'm afraid I'm already married. Better luck next time, honey."

Jericho chuckles as Asuna's blush deepens, pivoting around to face Setsuna, her sword still drawn. Eyebrows perked up at the swordswoman, the grin on the man's face grows bigger.

"That style…that would be Shinmei-ryu, am I correct?"

Y…Yes, it is." Setsuna blinks in surprise. Of all the places for someone to know of the Shinmei-ryu style, halfway across the world smack dab in the middle of a jungle would definitely have to be one of the least likely ones.

"Fantastic! I knew a guy that fought like that once upon a time. Oh…what was his name…? Konte? Kenji? Konoe…yeah, I think that was it! One of the Thousand Master's buddies!"

At the very mention of his father, Negi's ears perk up. Mentally salivating over the potential information, the young boy speaks up.

"Mr. Jericho, you knew my father?"

"First off, don't call me 'mister.' I work for a living! Second of all…father?" Jericho blinks in confusion, hopping from the tree limb down to the redhead, causing him to take an instinctive step back. After inspecting the now nervous boy's face, Jericho's own face breaks out in a grin.

"Well I'll be damned! You really are his boy!" By this point, the man is laughing quite loudly as he gives Negi a good natured slap on the back. The tiger, picking up on his apparent owner's vibes, nuzzles his head up against the boy's side. "So how the heck is Nagi doing these days anyway?"

"…I wish I knew." Negi replies sadly. "To tell the truth, I haven't seen him since I was younger, and even then, I'm not sure if it was him…honestly, I'm not even sure if he is alive…"

"Nagi dead?" Jericho looks at the now rather depressed Negi before resuming his laughing. "Your old man is one of the toughest son of a guns I have ever met! Ain't no way he can be dead! You got to have more faith than that!"

"I suppose, but…"

"But nothing, kid!" Jericho grins as he dismisses the boy's worries. "Now then, I'm sure that you guys are all a little bushed from wandering through the jungle for who knows how long. My cabin is about a mile north of here. What do you say we get you kids some food? We can talk about Nagi there too! Can't have a conversation on an empty stomach, after all!"

Looking about, Setsuna decides to respond to Jericho's little offer, seeing that Negi is too in awe of the possible info on his father, Asuna is too enamored with the older man at the current time, and Chisame…well, she is either very confused or very uncaring of the situation. Setsuna still can't quite put her finger on whichever one it might be.

"Well, that is nice of you, Jericho-san. For a place that is supposed to be wary of strangers, I have to say, you are certainly going out of your way to be helpful."

"Well the way I see it, if you wanted to kill any of us here, you would have tried to put that blade into my back, so you aren't here to do that. None of you have huge packs or containers, so I'm guessing that trying to loot any and all of our medicinal herbs is out of the equation as well." Jericho grins before continuing. "Of course, there are a lot of…well, pardon the language…hard asses around here, but you folks haven't done anything to make me be hostile towards you, so why the heck should I be?"

"Hmm…" Setsuna cups her chin in her hand as she looks over the grinning man. "…alright. You'll forgive me if I keep my eye on you."

"Do whatever it is you have to do, love." Jericho grins in response. "Shall we be going now, Mr. Springfield?"

"Sure. It's on the way to the village anyways, right?" Negi grins and bows his head to Jericho. "Thank you again, Mr. Jericho."

"Right! And don't call me mister! Makes me feel old…"

* * *

After about an hour's walk, the quintet find themselves walking towards a log cabin. Not as nice as the one Eva has back on campus, but given the surroundings, Negi has to admit it's still pretty good. As the group gets closer to the cabin, they notice an elderly man leaning next to the door of the cabin, a groan of frustration coming from Jericho as he notices. Telling the youngsters to sit tight for a minute, Jericho walks towards the man, the look on his face making it fairly obvious that he isn't there for a happy word.

"Well, well, well…Jericho failed at his job. Not that I can say I'm surprised."

"Well, I don't see them razing the village or the forest, so I guess it's not too terrible, boss." Jericho responds with a smirk. "You done bothering me, then?"

"Jericho, if you're going to be a guardian, that usually involves doing some…oh, I don't know…guarding?" The older man scoffs. "You are this close to being thrown out of here. I'd watch yourself, boy."

Grumbling under his breath, the old man takes his leave, Jericho sighing in relief as soon as he is out of earshot. Turning back to the teacher and his students, Jericho shoots the young mage a thumbs up.

"Jericho-san…what was that all about?" A naturally confused Negi asks, earning a scoff from the man in return.

"The village chief, mayor, big kahuna, grand poobah, whatever the hell you want to call him." Jericho replies back. "The guy is better fitted to be a hermit than in charge of a village…eh, nicer to me than he was when I came here fifteen years ago, anyways. Come along now, children. We'll have ourselves a nice little talk."

Motioning to the door, Negi and company file in to the cabin, Jericho closing up behind them. Sitting down at a table, Negi's attention is drawn to the floor as he feels something rub against his hand. Looking down, the young boy's eyes lock with the green tiger from earlier, the beast's eyes still with their reddish glow, but considerably more gentle than they were back in the forest. Patting the tiger on the head, it responds with a purr before moving to Chisame, licking the girl's hand and causing her to draw it back in disgust.

"Aw, Calamity likes you!" Jericho laughs as he rummages through a cabinet. "He can look a little scary, but he really isn't any more dangerous than a normal housecat. No need to be scared."

Chuckling nervously and with great unease, Chisame pats the tiger on the head, deciding that regardless of the bow wielding maniac's words, it would probably be in her best interests to reciprocate the beast's feeling of fondness. Soon after patting the beast's fur, it scampers off at the sound of approaching footsteps, which also do a good job of gathering everyone else's attention. Looking up at the door, they see a woman with reddish brown hair a few inches below her neck, her pale green eyes locked on Jericho. A playful smirk emerges on the woman's face as she rests her head on Jericho's shoulder.

"So, I take it that you and uncle got into it again?"

"Sorry, hon."

"What for? You're trying to help the Thousand Master's kid. No need to apologize for that."

"You know my father too?" Negi asks, smile plastered on his face. "Did he come through here or something?"

"Well, yes. He helped us out…oh, what was it?" The woman puts her index finger to her chin in thought. "Twelve years ago, I think it was."

"Yeah, I think it was about that long…" Jericho nods, turning back to his guests. "Oh, I'm sorry ladies and young gentleman. This is my wife, Rachel."

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Springfield and wives." Rachel bows her head, while the three girls try to recover from the woman's labeling of them as wives. Negi, for his part, is in the middle of panic mode, as marriage is typically one of the very last things on a ten year old male mind.

"They aren't my wives!" Negi replies, waving his arms in front of him for extra emphasis. "Asuna-san here is my partner, and Setsuna-san and Chisame-san are friends who are here to help."

"Hey, don't clump me in with you guys!" Chisame huffs, flinching in shock as Rachel rests a hand on her shoulder.

"Oh, now there's no need to be so harsh. It took me about three years before I finally warmed up to Jericho here. Love will eventually find a way."

"Are you nuts?" Chisame retorts back, the look of annoyance fairly obvious on her face.

"Care for some tea?" Rachel replies back with a smile, making Chisame wonder if the lady is really that dense or just doing it to irritate her. Humming to herself, the woman makes her way around the table to quench the youngsters' thirsts. Nodding in appreciation as he gets his tea, Negi opts to get back on track.

"Twelve years ago, you said?" The boy asks, taking a sip of his tea. "So, why was my father here?"

"Oh, the whole gang was here! Well, two of 'em, anyhow." Jericho replies, a grin on his face. "Thing is, we were having some trouble with fortune hunters…okay, a lot of trouble with fortune hunters. Being an isolated village is nice and all, except when trouble comes knocking. Lucky for us, the Thousand Master was in town. That Konoe fella was looking for something to cure his little girl."

"Ojou-sama?" Setsuna's ears perk up instantly at the mention of Konoka.

"Ojou-sama?" Jericho replies, scratching his chin as he tries to remember his Japanese titles. "Well, if that's the case, I'd say the medicine was a rousing success. Glad to hear! She a friend of yours, I take it?"

"Y…Yes." Setsuna replies, blushing quite heavily as she does so.

"Well, she is certainly lucky to have such a strong friend." Jericho grins, Setsuna raising an eyebrow at him in suspicion. After all, it wasn't like Jericho witnessed her fighting or anything. Noting the girl's confusion, the man points to his head with one hand and gives a thumbs up with the other. "I got a sixth sense about these kinds of things! Why do you think I shot at you guys? I knew you'd probably be able to take out the family pet if I didn't, that's why! But getting back to the talk at hand…Negi, how is your dad doing, anyways? Fame or no, he is one hell of a down to earth, fun guy. Maybe fatherhood has kept him from raising too much hell, eh?"

"I…I wish I had an answer for you, Jericho-san." Negi sadly replies, looking into his teacup at his own depressed reflection. "I haven't seen him since I was about four. Not even sure if he's alive."

"Hey now…someone as young as you shouldn't be so macabre, you know." Jericho responds rather awkwardly, being overly kind and compassionate obviously something the man has little experience with. "I mean, your father is badass incarnate! There's no way he'd buy the farm!"

"I think what my husband is trying to say is that your father is more than likely still alive." Rachel replies, sounding a lot more confident than her husband. "All the stories that you have heard about your father…well, they really don't do him justice until you see him up close and personal. Believe me, I'm sure that your father is alive and well, wherever he may be."

"You really think so?"

"Of course! Don't worry about him and don't give up, Negi! You and your wives will find him some day, I'm sure!"

"We're not his wives!" Chisame interjects in frustration.

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Springfield." A grinning Jericho adds in, much to the net idol's rage. "Oh, cheer up. I'm about to give you some Thornblood Sage, after all. That's what you guys want, right?"

"Y…Yes, it is…but how did you know?"

"Well, no offense Negi, but you guys were talking so loud out in the woods that I am honestly shocked that I was the first person to stumble across your little gang. For future reference, I would suggest talking quieter and taking softer steps next time around. Oh, and try to stick to the trees and not walk in a clearing. And if you must climb a tree, make sure that nothing is lying in wait to attack you…"

"We get it, we get it…" Asuna sheepishly responds, vividly remembering all the fuss she made about seeing the silver barked tree before climbing it and getting ambushed by the guardian's tiger…beast…pet thing.

"Thank you very much, Jericho." Negi smiles at the man as he gets up and rummages through a basket on the counter, returning a few moments later holding up a handful of blood red leafs.

"No problem, Negi, but there's something you have to do for me." Jericho grins, holding the leaves just out of reach of the boy's hand and slowly extending his other hand towards the youth. "Don't give up on finding your old man. Seeing as how Nagi saved our village, the least I can do is make sure his son sees out his goals to the end. Deal?"

"…Deal!" Negi enthusiastically agrees, shaking Jericho's extended hand before the man hands over the leaves. "Thank you again."

"Don't sweat it, kiddo! Now run along and put those to good use. If you just retrace your steps, you should be able to get back to the portal without any complications. Good luck, children!"

"Thank you Jericho!" A grinning Negi replies as he waves to the older man.

"Thank you very much, Jericho-san." Setsuna bows in respect before following Negi out the door.

"T…Take care!" A blushing Asuna manages to spout out as she leaves.

"…Whatever." Chisame grumbles, bringing up the rear.

Waving to the children as they make their way from the cabin, Jericho lets out a sigh as he sits back down at the table.

"Rachel, you do know that he ain't married to any of those girls, right?"

"Of course." The woman responds sweetly. "It was just so much fun seeing the girl with the glasses getting so flustered. She reminds me a lot of me at that age. Grouchy, brooding… although, you do know that since you helped them, you're probably out of the village, right?"

"Yeah, probably…sorry."

"It's alright." Rachel replies, leaning over her husband and wrapping her arms around him. "It's not like I wanted to spend the rest of my life here, anyways. I've always wanted to see the world, after all."

"Got a sense of adventure?"

"You could say so."

* * *

**The Follow Up:** Wow, just when I thought the updates couldn't be further apart, I go and amaze even myself. But hey, writer's block and power issues with your laptop will do that to you. Those problems in the rearview mirror, we are set to roll. I'd make a promsie as updates go, but considering how well that one worked out last time, probably best if I don't. Ah well. As usual, reviews/constructive ciriticism/comments are always appreciated. See you again with Fallout in the future!

_-Midnight_


	19. Team Clyde: Long Way Down

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Negima. That is Ken Akamatsu's brain child. The only things I own are my ideas, so please don't sue.

**Author's Notes:** Well, it seems that Negi and company have succeeded in their end of the bargain. How will Clyde's team fare? And speaking of that blonde haired dork, are we ever going to learn anything about him one of these days? Well, there's only one way to find out! Let's get to it, shall we?

**Negima: Fallout**

**Chapter 19**

* * *

"_You idiot!"_

_Clyde winces in response to Professor Akashi's words, wincing even further due to the right hook he takes immediately afterwards. Dropping to a knee and coughing, Clyde glares at the older man, happy that at least Yuna is waiting outside and not witness to the lovely little exchange. No need to have the situation be any worse than it already is, after all._

"_It's not bad enough that you accidentally dragged Yuna into the magical world, but then you made a pactio with her out of the blue!?" Akashi puts a hand to his face and strokes his chin stubble in frustration before continuing. "And then, to top it off, you want to take her to a spring hidden away somewhere in a frozen wasteland to face God knows what dangers…"_

"_It's not how you're making it sound, sir!" Clyde tries to defend himself, both verbally and physically as he sidesteps another Akashi haymaker. "We got jumped by a bunch of demons and didn't have much of a choice…"_

"_You're a mage, aren't you!?" The older man snaps back in response. "You didn't have to make a pactio with Yuna! Especially after…"_

"…_What happened to your wife." Clyde replies. "Since I got assigned to be Negi's Observer, I've taken it upon myself to learn all I can about his surroundings and the people that he associates with. Naturally, with your magical background, you came up fairly quickly in my research."_

"_Then you understand why I'm against this…" Professor Akashi responds, a hint of sadness clearly in his voice. Shaking his head sadly and lowering his fists, the teacher continues speaking, the tone in his voice notably softer. "Look, I'm sorry that I hit you earlier. It's just that Yuna is all I have left. If something were to happen to her…I'm sorry, but I can't let her go with you."_

"_Well, I won't disrespect your wishes then. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for getting Yuna involved. You wanted her to be protected from the magical world and it was your decision to make on if and when she learned about it…I should be going. That spring isn't going to find itself."_

_After bowing to the teacher, Clyde turns to leave, stopping in his tracks as Akashi has one final thought for the youth._

"_I was going to tell her one day…her mother would have wanted me to. It's just that some scars take a while to heal."_

"_Hmm."_

* * *

"So, guessing from the shiner, I'm thinking that Akashi-sensei didn't take too kindly to your little visit?"

Taking the opportunity to look up from the ground, Clyde's eyes lock with Asakura's soon after her question. Letting loose with a slight chuckle and adjusting a duffel bag slung over his shoulder, the blonde Observer nods in agreement with the paparazzo's guess.

"It's not as bad as it looks. Don't think ill of him. Hell, if I was him, I probably would have wound up punching me too."

Shaking her head, Ako looks at Clyde's bruised eye and puts a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.

"You shouldn't think like that, Clyde-san. It's not like any of this happened intentionally. Besides…I'm kind of happy that it did."

"Kind of happy about being assaulted by demons, slime girls, half demons, and creepy little albino kids?" Clyde asks in response, half serious, half sarcastically.

"Well, not so much that, but…"

Ako finds herself unable to finish her thought on the matter of magic though as the sound of rapid footsteps echoes about. Looking behind them, the trio notices a certain black haired girl approaching fast. Eyebrow arched in confusion, Clyde walks towards the girl, becoming an unintentional tackling dummy for the basketball ace as Yuna is unable to come to a stop beforehand. Grimacing in slight pain, Yuna picks herself off the ground as Clyde slowly gets to his feet as well.

"Yuna, what in the heck are you doing here?" Clyde manages to gasp as he tries to suck the air Yuna knocked out of his body back in. "I thought your dad…"

"Well…" Yuna starts, haphazardly kicking at the ground. "After you left, me and dad sat down and had a nice, long talk. I was able to get him to change his mind, so he let me go with his blessing."

"…You snuck out, didn't you?" Ako responds, clearly able to tell when her friend may be embellishing the truth. This, naturally, being one of those times.

"…Yeah, kind of." Yuna replies, chuckling and nervously rubbing the back of her head. "I hope he isn't too mad at me…how did you guys know that I was fibbing, anyways?"

"Well, the wardrobe is a bit of a giveaway." Asakura points out, stifling a laugh.

"It's a t-shirt and jeans. What about it?" Yuna blinks in confusion, not really getting the point the redhead is trying to make.

"Well, isn't it a little cold for you?"

Having to run to catch up with the group, Yuna really hasn't paid much attention to her surroundings other than the footprints that she has been following. Mentally slapping herself in the forehead, the black haired girl looks about, a mixture of white and gray making up a majority of the landscape. A cold gust of wind blows by, the crackling sound of ice breaking off tree branches serving as a response. The numbing feeling that Yuna feels from the wind isn't aided at all by the small snowflakes that are slowly but surely accumulating on her shoulders and head. Snow…the same substance that she had noticed the footprints in. Finally, looking up at her comrades, Yuna can't help but notice the small fact that they are all dressed for winter, snow boots and thick coats all about.

"Oh crap…" Yuna mutters under her breath. "I'm going to freeze out here! Maybe I can go back to that portal and get some stuff…no. That would only slow down the group. That, plus I'm sure daddy knows I'm gone by now, and the chances that he's going to let me out of his sight after this are…well, they suck about as much as being out in the dead of winter in a t-shirt…"

"Heads up, Akashi!" Asakura grins as she tosses something to the basketball ace. "A free sweater, courtesy of Mahora's best reporter! See, that's the nice thing about being a girl, Clyde. We have clothes. Lots and lots of clothes!"

"I wasn't asking for an explanation, you know…"

"Wow, thanks Asakura!" Yuna beams as she tosses the much warmer article of clothing on. "It's a little baggy, but it'll work."

"Hmm?" The reporter's ears perk up at Yuna's last comment. "Are you saying that I'm fat or something?"

"No, of course not! Just saying that it doesn't fit tight on me."

"Well excuse me if I'm not a twig…" Asakura trails off as a small grin forms on her face. "…wait a minute. It's gotta be the boobs! Number four in class, baby!"

"Oh, come on!" Yuna pouts. "They aren't THAT much bigger!"

"Hey, four centimeters is four centimeters." Asakura brags, turning a rather evil gaze towards an unsuspecting Clyde, currently busy discussing something with Ako. "Hey, you're a guy, Clyde. I'm sure you've got all sorts of experience in checking out the finer aspects of the female anatomy! You wanna try to break the truth to Yuna, because she really isn't listening to me."

"The truth about what?"

"Who's boobs are bigger. Mine or Akashi's."

"What!?" The blonde spits out, nearly tripping over his feet in shock over the question. "That's not exactly one of my areas of expertise! You wouldn't want my opinion!"

"Clyde, you are probably my best friend that's a guy." Kazumi smirks at the boy before continuing, leaning on his shoulder and batting her eyebrows as she does so. "Your opinion means a lot to me."

"Oh, come on, Clyde-kun!" Yuna pouts, putting an arm on the blonde's opposite shoulder. "I'm your freaking partner! You gotta back me up! She's got old info! I'm pretty sure I had a growth spurt in there somewhere!"

"…Hey, Ako? I think I see a cave up ahead!" Clyde quickly retorts as he shrugs away from Yuna and Asakura, hoping that his red face won't give him away. "I think that might be where we're supposed to go! We'd better hurry!"

Grasping the girl's arm, Clyde picks up the pace, hoping to get away from the paparazzo's various queries. Feeling Ako slowing down, the Observer turns his attention over to the lighter haired girl only to be treated to a rather nervous look. Blinking in confusion, Clyde is unable to figure out just what in the heck the nurse's problem is, the answer suddenly hits him as he recognizes the taste of iron on his tongue. Feeling his nose, the boy is treated to a sight of liquid crimson when he looks at his hand.

Busted.

"I…It's the cold and dry air! I bleed easily, okay!?" Clyde retorts, grabbing a handful of the glistening powder on the ground and tossing it in his face, both as a means to clean his nose and as a means to purge the less than pure thoughts that the smarmy reporter had oh-so-kindly put in his head. A brief second later, a slap to the back of the blonde's head eliminates whatever thoughts the face full of snow might not have.

"Knock it off, Clyde-kun!"

"…Sorry, Yuna…and thanks a ton, Kazumi."

"Glad to help!"

* * *

A few hours later, the quartet finds themselves huddling around a campfire in a cave. Not the fictional one Clyde came up with to try to get away from the whole 'who's more endowed' question, but an actual one. Laughing as she roasts a hot dog over the flame, Asakura gives Clyde a slap on the back.

"Man, I gotta tell you, if yesterday someone would have told me I was going to be having a weenie roast in a cave in the middle of an arctic wasteland, I would have called them an idiot! Although, it actually is kind of nice. Once you get over the freezing your ass off even when you are sitting right next to the fire, it's pretty fun!"

"Yeah…" Clyde absentmindedly replies, staring off into the depths of the cave, the reflection of the fire carelessly dancing off the icy walls. Sighing and slowly chewing at a piece of jerky, the boy's attention is grabbed as a hand falls gently on his shoulder. Turning his head, he locks gazes with a just as worried looking Ako.

"…You're really worried about Naba-san and Bookworm, aren't you?"

"That easy to tell, hmm?"

"Well, you aren't really doing that good of a job of hiding it, Clyde-kun." Ako chuckles slightly. "We're all worried about them."

"I can see why Negi is always worried about you girls." Clyde confesses, stretching his legs out in a rather vain attempt to warm up his body. "Heck, even in the short time that you girls have known about magic, you've been captured in a trap meant for me and Negi. And then following that up by getting caught up in a demon attack meant for Asuna and Negi. And then, I wind up binding Yuna to my fate by making her be my partner…sorry guys…er, ladies."

"Aw, don't be so depressed, Clyde-kun!" Yuna cheers from the other side of the alchemically induced campfire. "You should be happy! I did wind up saving your butt, after all. Besides, I should be apologizing for daddy hitting you like he did."

"Water under the bridge. I understand why he did it." Clyde replies, the stinging of the blow slightly retuning to his senses thanks to the black haired girl bringing it up. "Besides, I could see Bookworm or Chizuru hitting me harder thanks to them getting turned into statures."

"I'm sure they don't hold any ill will towards you or Negi-sensei. They shouldn't anyways." Ako tries to reassure the blonde. "Besides, I'm sure any grudge they might have had will be gone after we cure them."

"I suppose so." A slight smile comes over Clyde's face, the boy seemingly being reassured by Ako's words. The boy's smile grows even further as he looks across the fire again to see Yuna still smiling, but shivering a little more than she was earlier. Reaching into his knapsack, Clyde pulls out his green cloak and crumples it up into a ball, tossing it over the flames and into Yuna's lap. Smirking and giving the girl a thumbs up, Yuna returns the gesture and wraps the fabric around her, the girl's shivering becoming slightly less noticeable.

"Aw, isn't that touching?" Asakura grins, taking a picture of the basketball girl enjoying the warmth of Clyde's cloak. "Of course, I'm sure that it would leave your girlfriend heartbroken…once we get her un-statued, of course.

"C…Chizuru isn't my girlfriend!"

"Right, sorry about that. I forgot that your girlfriend is sitting right here around the fire."

"Yuna isn't my girlfriend either!"

"Hmm…I didn't say it was Yuna though. You came up with that one all on your own." Asakura grins mischievously. "I could have been referring to Izumi or myself, you know. Come to think of it, I didn't say Naba was your woman either. You're just getting all sorts of ideas, aren't you?"

"Hey, how about we talk about something else?" Clyde replies, blushing as he nudges Ako. Taking the hint, the red eyed girl nods to the blonde and changes the subject.

"So, how long have you been a mage?" Ako offhandedly asks, partially to distract Asakura from her little crusade of tormenting Clyde, partially because of her own curiosity. It isn't exactly like the boy has been an open book to them, after all.

"Ten years, technically. Started when I was five. Me and my sister both did."

"Oh, right. You're a twin, aren't you?"

"…Yeah." Clyde replies, a hint of sadness in his voice. "Mom and Dad put us both into an academy in the United States. Both graduated at age ten. After graduation, we both got our assignments and went our separate ways. My first job after graduation is pretty ironic, actually. Student teacher at a magic academy in Wales. Teaching alchemy, matter of fact. That's where I first met Negi."

"So you were actually one of Negi's teachers?" Ako asks, chuckling the whole while. "…Sorry, Clyde. It's just kind of ironic. Negi is teaching you in school after learning from you."

"Bah…" Clyde replies, a sour look on his face as the truth of the nurse's statement settles in. "Full circle, yeah…"

"So how in the world did you end up getting the Observer gig then?" Asakura asks, smirking as she writes on a notepad. "No worries. Just a force of habit for me whenever I ask questions."

"Well, after a couple of years of teaching the intricacies of potion making, the boredom and tediousness of it all began to set in. I wanted to go out on my own. So after the end of my second year there, I made my intentions clear. Mom and dad were cool with it, which was real nice. Clair…not so much…" Clyde pauses, quickly turning his frown back into a smile. "But what the hell? A couple of years out on my own and I decided to head back to check out the old school. See if they had anything more interesting for me. So they gave me the Observer job. A little boring, not the most glamorous, but it could be worse. They could have had me being a meter maid in the Magic Country where I don't know anybody or something like that. Or being a janitor…"

"Oh, the irony!" Asakura laughs. "Well, at least Barry-san seems to be a cool of enough guy."

"I think he is, anyways." Ako replies with a smirk.

"You have a crush on him, Ako!?" Yuna asks in shock. "Dang, you and Asuna should form a club, what with the liking older guys and all. Well, at least Barry is younger than Takahata-sensei."

"No, nothing like that!" Ako is quick to dismiss Yuna's theory, waving her arms in front of her for extra emphasis. "Barry-san is one of my brother's friends, so I've known him for a while now. Matter of fact, he's the one that taught me how to play bass guitar."

"Well I'll be danged." Clyde smirks. "I know that Barry's got a band and all, but didn't know he gave lessons. Well, I guess everybody has to have hobbies, right?"

"So what are your hobbies then, Clyde-kun?" Yuna pipes up, causing the blonde to scratch the back of his head in response.

"Geez, what's with all the questions?"

"Aw, we just want to know more about you, Clyde." Asakura grins, continuing to jot things down on her notepad. "You're the new kid, so it isn't like it should be a shocker…though there is one thing that's came off as a little strange to me."

"Oh? What's that?"

"You didn't seem to be too thrilled when we were talking about your sister. Something happen there?"

"Kind of." Clyde replies nervously. "Anyways, about those hobbies…"

"So then have you seen her since you left at least?"

"…Once or twice. Not exactly what you would call tight knit by any means." Clyde confirms, standing up and stretching soon after. Pacing nervously back and forth and seemingly irritated, the blonde finally turns back to the trio of rather confused girls and grins.

"We should probably get to going, shouldn't we? This spring isn't going to find itself, you know?"

Looking at each other confused for a few moments, Yuna decides that dropping the subject of Clyde's sister would probably be the best way to go for the time being. After all, if he wants to talk about it, he will whenever he's ready, right?

"Roger!" The basketball girl hops up, grinning and saluting the Observer. "Where to, oh fearless leader?"

"Well…I'm not too sure!" Clyde confesses, grinning sheepishly all the while.

"What the hell? I thought you said you've been here before, Clyde!" Asakura shouts, shaking her head in disbelief. "You know, you'd make for a pretty crappy reporter. You got to have more of a memory than what you have, after all."

"Hey, no need to be mean! I've been here before, yeah, but that was when I was little. Really little." Clyde defends himself. "Just be happy that I remembered the cave that it was in. That's a success in itself, isn't it?"

Shaking her head as Asakura and Clyde continue their little verbal spat of sorts, Ako pushes herself up from the ground and walks from the fire. Shining her flashlight around the cavern, the girl is able to make out several tunnels in the pale light. Noticing something shining out of the corner of her eye without the aid of her flashlight, the nurse directs her attention over to the source. Walking a few meters, Ako finds herself coming to an abrupt stop as to keep herself from taking a rather nasty tumble off of a ledge. Eyes widening, Ako turns off her light, not needing it as there is enough of it pouring in from cracks in the ceiling. From her best guess, the girl judges it to be about forty feet down. A small grin slowly forms on her face as she pivots around.

"Clyde! I think I found it!"

"No kidding?" The blonde remarks, walking over to the ledge where the lavender haired girl is standing. Looking down, Clyde lets out a whistle at the distance. Scanning the area below, Clyde's face lights up as he spots a spray of water coming from a rock formation.

"Ako, you rule!" Clyde beams, wrapping the now blushing girl in a hug. "That is one heck of an attention to detail there!"

"Well, the light coming out of the ceiling was a good hint." Ako admits. "You wouldn't happen to remember how to get down there, would you? Looks like it's a little too steep to climb down from here."

"Well, if I remember, we had to go down through the tunnels. But as for which ones, I'm not sure…go ahead and get your stuff ready. We may as well head down, right?"

"Sure! I've got a good feeling about this one!"

"Me too." Clyde smiles at the girl, watching as she makes her way back over to the fire before turning his attention back to the spring. Stroking his chin as he looks things over, the blonde wracks his brain trying to remember just how to get down there. A loud cracking noise though manages to change the youth's focus rather quickly though. Looking down at his feet, Clyde lets out a yelp as he notices that the ledge he is standing on is more than likely ice rather than stone, the rapid forming cracks in it being a good piece of evidence. Breathing nervously, Clyde remains still, not wanting to aggravate the ice into breaking. However, it seems that the ice has different ideas as it shatters before giving the blonde any time to think. Eyes wide in shock, Clyde looks down at what he is falling towards, taking a small bit of solace in the fact that it seems to be a frozen over pool of water. Taking a deep breath, the blonde shuts his eyes and crosses his fingers, hoping that he is right and the shouts of concern from the trio of girls above him won't be the last things that he ever hears…

* * *

Letting a groan of pain escape his lips, Clyde looks around at his surroundings, the blurry vision he currently has not doing him any favors. Feeling a numbness in his legs, the blonde realizes that his body managed to break through the ice. Relieved over the fact that he at least didn't end up being splattered all over the ice, albeit barely, Clyde claws at the bit of it that his upper half is lying on, hoping to pull his legs out of the frigid water. After an unsuccessful first attempt, the blonde takes a deep breath and tries again. Unfortunately, the slipperiness of the ice doesn't really want to cooperate with the freezing boy, causing him to actually slip into the water even deeper, to about his pectorals roughly. Cursing in anger, Clyde slams a fist on the ice in frustration.

"Damnit…I am not going down like this!" Clyde mutters bitterly to himself. "Drowning in cold water or going down to hypothermia…to hell with that…"

"_That's the spirit, Clyde!"_

"What the hell?" Clyde looks about in confusion, the blurriness of his vision still very much present. "Kazumi? Ako? Yuna?"

"_No, no, and no, my friend. You can't even tell who I am by my voice? You must really be out of it."_

"Heh…I don't even know if you are real or a hallucination…whoever the hell you are." Clyde sluggishly responds. "I think the cold is getting to me. Can't really make sense of anything right now."

"_Unsure, are you? Fascinating questions, to be sure. Is it a truth, or is it a lie? Is it reality? An illusion? One thing is for sure though, Clyde Metro…if your current situation doesn't scare you, then you're already dead."_

"Alright, alright…I get it…" Clyde mutters in frustration, hoping that there actually is someone there that he is talking to just so he can claim he isn't insane. "Got to get out of here…one foot in front of the other…"

"_Good answer, Metro. You've managed to cheat death once. And to be honest, this little situation is a lot less severe than your last near-death experience."_

"Nearly crushed by a dragon…yeah! If I lived though that, I'll live through a tumble through ice…"

"_Way to motivate yourself. Hope that for your sake you don't disappoint."_

Gritting his teeth, Clyde takes another stab at pulling himself free from a frigid demise. Lurching forward the blonde manages to get a couple more inches of his body onto the ice. Dragging himself further onto the relative safety of the frozen pond, the feeling of triumph is quickly fleeting for the boy as at the same moment he gets his knee on the ice, it gives away, causing the boy's progress to come completely crashing to a halt as the force of the slip submerges his entire body again. Quick to get his head above water, the boy settles for draping his arms on the ice again, legs too tired and numb from the water to really do anything much more now. Sighing in defeat, Clyde feels his eyelids getting heavier and heavier as his body begins slipping back into the water.

"Sorry girls…this wasn't supposed to happen…" Clyde chuckles and slowly shakes his head at his current situation. "Glad the map is with my bag so they can at least make it back…hope they do remember to get to the spring too…no sense in Honya and Chizuru suffering because of my crappy luck…"

Closing his eyes, Clyde feels himself sliding into the water, suddenly coming to an abrupt stop as he feels a hands clasping around both of his wrists. Feeling himself being pulled from a watery grave, a smile can't help but find its way to the blonde's face. The smile turning into full blown laughter, Clyde slowly raises one of his arms in the air in celebration of his salvation.

"Juno…"

"Juno…who the heck is that!?"

Eyes slowly opening, Clyde is able to work through his blurry vision to make out the image of a certain trio of ladies, all with concerned looks on their faces. The blonde puts his arm down and uses it to try to push himself to a seated position, being denied in his actions as the boy's rescuers drag him off of the ice and back onto some more reliable ground. Trying again to get to a seated position, this time the ladies opt to help him, though the hug he receives from Yuna afterwards nearly knocks him back to the ground anyways.

"Dang it Clyde-kun! If you're going to go swimming, you could at least do it in your swim trunks!" The girl jokes, though Clyde is able to detect a bit of sniffling in the girl's words. "Plus it's a little too cold to do that here, you dork!"

Releasing the boy from the embrace Yuna looks at him with a smile on her face. Tears in her eyes as well, but a smile nonetheless. Returning the girl's smile, Clyde kicks off his now soaked boots, grumbling as he notices the water on them is already starting to freeze up. Looking the boy over, Ako sets his duffel bag on the ground next to him and begins fishing through it.

"Uh…something you looking for in particular?" Clyde asks, frosted eyebrow arched.

"You wouldn't happen to have another one of those potions you used for the campfire, would you?"

"Yeah, it's the vial with the orange stopper…why?"

"You don't want to get hypothermia, right?" Ako asks, the worry on her face evident despite the smile she is showing. "You're going to need to get out of those wet clothes too. Fire won't do you much good if you're soaked."

"Leave it to the nurse!" Yuna cheers. "So, anything I can do to help?"

"Getting the water from the spring would be good." Clyde replies, a relieved smile coming to his face as he hears the shattering of glass and the roar of a fire immediately after. "Ako spotted it down here before I took my tumble, so she should be able to lead you to it…I think I'd better take her advice and change while you're gone."

"You got it, Clyde-kun!" Yuna hops up, patting Clyde on the shoulder. "Be back in little bit! Sure you're gonna be okay?"

"Hopefully." Clyde smirks, relieved that he is starting to gain a little bit of feeling back in his body. Tossing a canteen to the black haired girl, Clyde gives her another thumbs up. "Yeah, I'm not planning on kissing the dirt yet. Hurry along now."

"Right! Lead the way, Ako!" Yuna nods. "We'll be back in a few!"

Waving to the girls as they walk, the blonde's eyebrow arched in suspicion as he sees Asakura walk back towards him. Chuckling to himself as he inches closer to the fire, Clyde finds his face mere inches away from the reporter's.

"Just so you know, normally I'd be grilling you about this Juno person…but I guess I'm just so happy you didn't end up dead that I'm going to ignore it for now." Asakura grins, running her hand through Clyde's soaked hair. "Try not to scare us like that again though. We might actually miss you eventually."

"Ha…thanks for the sentiment." Clyde grins back. "Besides, I still have to lead you back to the portal, right?"

Chuckling as she backs up, the paparazzo nods in agreement before chasing after Yuna and Ako. Watching the trio of girls in the distance, Clyde goes back to rummaging through his bag, tossing off his soaked articles of clothing and quickly replacing them for less soaked ones. His task finished, the blonde lies on his back, listening to the crackle of the flame, thoughts slowly seeping into his head.

"_Was I just hearing things now? Juno wasn't actually here…right?"_

* * *

**The Stat Line: **Started 03/24/09, Completed 04/02/09, Posted 04/21/09

**The Follow Up:** Well, that turned out to be more of a Clyde heavy chapter than I was hoping for it to be, but at least you good folks know a little more about his past, which is a plus…I think. Anyways, as you can see, no seven month wait in chapters this time (thank goodness), so I feel pretty confident in saying that Fallout will be out again in the near future. As always, comments/ideas/constructive criticism/flames are all welcome, so feel free if you have anything you want to be heard. See you guys with Fallout again soon!

_~Midnight_


End file.
